POPULAR 

GEOGKAPHICAL LIBRARY. 



AUSTRALASIA. 




T 



P ( ) P U T. A R 

GEOGRAPHICAL LIBRARY. 



R O BERT S T E W A R T, A . M „ 



A U S T ]( A L A S 1 A : 



A N A P 1> E X 1) 1 X ; 



■•.:oNTAIKIN(i AUTHENTIC 1)0CJ(/? I i:NT3. ILI .US LVjIaTJ XG TH! 
rV(y:\<T/-< AN'D .STATE OF THE AUSTi! ALASJ ,\X COLONICS. 
TO THE LATI-;sT JJATK. 



L () A no X ; 




43 ^J 



ADVERTISEMENT. 



In modern times, especially at the present period, 
tlie general intercourse of knowledge amongst all 
classes,^ — the intimate commercial and political re- 
lations existing between civilised communities, — 
and the universal desire of all inquiring minds to 
become acquainted with distant countries, and 
with the inhabitants, condition, and productions of 
regions differing from our own, — unite in render- 
ing Geographical Knowledge interesting to the 
majority of the human family ; while to many it 
is indispensible, in qualifying them for the pur- 
suits of commerce and industry, and for much of 
the current and daily avocations of life. 

On these grounds, therefore, and with the view 
of imparting such useful information in a cheap 

^\ form, is " THE POPULAR GEOGRAPHIC A L 
LIBRARY'' introduced to the public, upon a 

^^^v^plan wliiclj ])r('sents peculiar advantages. 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 



Introduction 

Oceanica ...... 1 

alaysia ... . . 14 

Polynesia . . . t . .20 

Australia ; or, New Holland . . . 33 

New South Wales . . . . .34 

Port Philip, called "Victoria." . . . 139 

Van Diemau's Land . . . . .181 

Wes^ . Australia ; or, Swan River . . 237 

South Australia . . . . .287 

Letter from G. F. Angus, Esq., for many years Chair- 
man of the South Australian Company . . 342 
Adc? ess of his Excellency Sir H. E. F. Young 
oo the Legislative Council of South Australia, 
Sept. 1, 1852 . . . . .345 

Letter from Sir H. E. F. Young to Mr. Hull, on the 

Navigation of the Murray . . . S5S 

APPENDIX. 

An Act for the better government of her Majesty's 

Australian colonies . . . .361 

Remonstrance of the vSelect Committee of the Legis- 
lative Council, against the Act of Parliament. 
13 & 14 Vic. cap. 69 . . 385 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 

Earl Grey's Ddspatch in answer to Eemoustranc* 392 
Statistical Returns of New South. Wales . . 407 

Present Condition of the Gold-fields . . 425 

The City and Port of Sydney . . .448 

Sydney Tariff ..... 461 
Present state of Melbourne . . . .457 

The Quarter's Revenue (ending 30 Sept. 1852) . 461 
The Adelaide Gold-fields . . . .463 

Report of the Chairman of the Adelaide Chamber of 
Commerce (George Elder, Esq., of the firm of 
A. L. Elder & Co.) . . .466 

South Australian Tariff .... 472 
The Enforcement of tJontracts made in England with 

reference to iN'ew South Wales . . . 474 

Australian Exports .... 476 

Steam Communication with the Australian Colonies 477 
Ocean Penny Postage . . . .478 



AUSTEALASIA, 



INTRODUCTION 

In introducing this extensive and valuable British 
colony to the notice of our readers, it may be 
necessary to give a description of the fifth quarter 
of the globe, to which it is allowed by geographers 
to belong ; we will, therefore, do so as shortly as 
possible. 

OcEANiCA is the name which has been adopted 
to designate all the countries which are considered 
as forming the Fifth grand Division of the Globe. 
Up to the middle of the last century, and even 
later, theoretical geographers, (from the fanciful 
idea of the necessity of an equilibrium in the solid 
parts of the surface of the earth, j supposed tliat a 
vast continent surrounded the Antartic Pole, and 
they gave the name of Terra Australis to this 
imaginary region. When the errors of these spe- 
culative writers were corrected by the voyages and 
discoveries of the celebrated navigator Captain 
Cook, ail the islands lying south of Asia, and 
those in the Pacific Ocean, had already received 
peculiar proper names. It did not seem convenient 
to the geographers of that period to add those 
islands to any particular quarter of the globe ; and 

B 



2 



INTRODUCTION. 



tbey wislied, therefore, to devise a name which 
should comprehend the whole of them, and at the 
same time point out their real position. The dif- 
ferent terms, Australia, Australasia, and Oceanica, 
have been proposed by different writers, of which 
the last appears to have obtained the ascendancy. 

Tlie islands composing Oceanica are situated 
partly to the south of Asia, and partly on the wide 
Pacific, between Asia and America. This portion 
of the globe began to be discovered after America 
and the South Seas were known to Europeans. 
Magellan, who first undertook a voyage round the 
world, had promised the Spanish monarch, (into 
whose service he entered when he left the Portu- 
guese,) that he would arrive at the Moluccas by 
sailing w^estward. On this voyage he discovered, 
on the 6 th of March, 1521, the Lad rones, or Mari- 
ana" Islands, a group of which constitutes a part of 
Oceanica. Magellan nmst therefore, in justice, be 
regarded as tlie first discoverer of this portion of 
the globe, and opened the way for the subsequent 
discoveries in this quarter. It w^as nearly three 
hundred years after this voyage of Magellan before 
all the islands, which now pass under the name of 
Oceanica, were known to Europeans. 

After Magellan the Spanish navigators continued 
the process of discovery in this part of the world, 
particularly Alvaro de Mendano, wiio, in the latter 
end of the sixteenth century, discovered the Solo- 
mon Islands and the Marquesas, and passed 
through the Society and Friendly Islands without 
observing tbeni. Fernandos de Qairos, who had 
accompanied him on his third voyage, took a 
southerly direction, and hit upon the part of the 
Pacific Ocean which contains the most islands. 
He made known to the wwld the Society Islands 
and Terra del Espiritu Santo. In the seventeenth 



OCEANICA. 



3 



centary, the Dutch, always thirsting after new 
discoveries, began to explore this part of the ocean, 
and, besides several small islands, discovered the 
large island of Australia, or New Holland, which 
received its name from them, although we have 
every reason for supposing that it had been visited 
by the Portuguese upwards of a hundred years 
before them ; but their discoveries seem, for politi- 
cal reasons, to have been concealed by their govern- 
ment, and afterwards altogether forgotten. Tasman, 
a Dutchman, and Dampier, an Englishman, suc- 
cessfully continued these discoveries. In the mid- 
dle of the eighteenth century, the English naviga- 
tors Byron, Carteret, and Wallis, and Bougainville, 
a Frenchman, exerted theiftselves to extend the 
knowledge of Oceanica. But Captain James Cook, 
who circumnavigated the globe, from 1768 to 
1779, contributed most to the accurate examination 
of this portion of the globe, corrected the know- 
ledge of Europeans with regard to the islands 
already known, again discovered islands before 
seen, and was the first discoverer of New Caledo- 
nia and the Sandwich Islands. Am.ong the later 
navigators we may mention Entrecasteaux, Grant, 
La Perouse, Baudin, Flinders, King, Krusenstern, 
Kotzebue, and Beechy, as those who have chiefly 
added to our knowledge of this region. 

Many of the islands are extensive countries, and 
one of them is about equal in area to the whole of 
Europe. The whole surface of the islands may be 
estimated at 5,000,000 square miles, an extent 
perhaps nearly equal to one-tenth part of all the 
land on the globe. It is almost impossible to 
compute the number of inhabitants, but we do 
not imagine we exceed tlie population, when we 
state it to be at least 24,000,000. No portion of 
the globe has more inequalities of surface, and it is 



4 



INTRODUCTION, 



remarkable that all the mountain ranges have a 
general direction from north to south. Many of 
the mountains are volcanic, and are described by 
navigators^ as often seeming to the mariner to rise 
like giants from the bosom of the deep. In no 
part of the world are there so many volcanoes. In 
Schouten's Island, near New Guinea, the flames 
and smoke rise calmly over a fruitful and smiling 
country ; in other islands, dreadful torrents of black 
lava darken the shores. The volcano of Gilolo 
broke out in 1673, with a violence which made 
the whole of the Moluccas shake. The ashes were 
carried as far as Magindauao, and the scoria and 
the pumice-stones, floating on the sea, seemed to 
retard the progress of the vessels. Several canoes 
are also in constant activity in the Sandwich 
Islands. 

The formation of many of these islands is attri- 
buted to the operations of minute insects. All the 
low islands appear to have for their base a reef of 
coral rocks, generally disposed in a circular form. 
In the interior the sand is mixed with pieces of 
broken coral, and other marine substances^ proving 
that such islands have been originally formed by 
these coral rocks, which are inhabited, and accord- 
ing to some, created by zoophytes^ (vegetables 
partaking of the nature both of plants and animals) 
and afterwards augmented and elevated by the 
slow accumulation of light bodies drifted to them 
by the sea. It is very remarkable that in some of 
these islands there are elevations of several feet in 
height, on whose summits the coral rocks are 
found ; this seems to prove that they have been 
formed by coral insects at the level of the sea, 
which has. gradually retired and left them exposed. 

The climate throughout Oceanica is, for the 
most part, delightful. Perpetual spring continued 



OCEANICA. 



5 



with perpetual summer, displays the opening blos- 
som, mingled with the ripened fruits. A perfume 
of exquisite sweetness embalms the atmosphere, 
which is continually refreshed by the wholesome 
breezes from the sea. Here might mankind, if 
they could throw oiF their vices, lead lives exempt 
from trouble and from want. Their bread grows 
on the trees which shade their paths, and the light 
boats and canoes glide in safety on the tranquil 
seas, protected from the swelling surge of the 
mighty ocean, by the coral rocks which enclose 
them. 

The islands of Oceanica afford a very varied 
vegetation, among the trees and plants of which 
there are many of the greatest benefit to the 
natives. In the Sunda Islands, the Philippines, 
and the Moluccas, rice occupies the place of wheat, 
and the culture of it is probably extended over 
New Guinea ; these also produce in abundance 
those tropical articles which are of chief importance 
in commerce ; cotton, sugar, pepper, coffee, and 
spices of all kinds, in greater variety than in any 
other part of the world. Farther to the east, in 
the islands of Polynesia, there are several exceed- 
ingly useful esculent roots and plants, which grow 
either spontaneously, or under the influence of 
culture. The yam, the taro, the sweet potatoe, 
the plantain, and the banana, — all, more or less, 
answer the double purpose of bread and vegetables. 
The most important product of these islands is the 
bread-fruit tree, the trunk of which rises to the 
height of forty feet, and attains the thickness of a 
man s body. The fruit is as large as a child's head : 
gathered before it is quite ripe, and baked among 
ashes, it becomes a wholesome bread, somewhat 
resembling fresh wheat bread in taste. One tra- 
veller, who had partaken several times of this 



6 



INTRODUCTIOX. 



fruit, remarks, " Better flavoured bread I never 
tasted in any of the numerous countries it has been 
my fortune to visit ; it is as nourishing to the body 
as it is grateful to the paLate." This has been 
corroborated by many. After the bread-fruit tree, 
the cocoa-nut is the most serviceable ; it grows 
equally well in the richest and in the most barren 
soils : and in its fruit, its wood, its leaves, and its 
fibres, it is equally subservient to the wants and 
the necessities of the people. Besides the articles 
enumerated, fruits of various kinds abound, and of 
excellent quality ; the chief are oranges, shaddocks^ 
limes, citrons, pine and custard ap})les, guavas, 
figs, &c. In many of the islands the principal 
European grains and vegetables have been intro- 
duced, and grow in great perfection. 

The people of Oceanica are divided into two 
races, distinct in origin, language, a-^pect and cha- 
racter, and irreconcileably hostile to each other ; — 
the hrown and the hlach races. They bear the 
same analogy that the white and the negro bear in 
the Western regions ; the former, superior in intel- 
ligence and power, driving the other before him, 
oppressing and reducing him to bondage. Thus in 
all the great islands, the brown race has now 
established a decided and undisputed superiority. 

The black race, called often the Papuas or Ori- 
ental Negroes, appear to be a dwarf variety of the 
negro of Africa. They are of low stature, and of 
feeble frame, generally under, and never exceeding 
five feet in height. The colour is sooty rather 
than black ; the woolly hair grows in small tufts, 
with a spiral twist. The forehead is higher, the 
nose more projecting, the upper lip longer and 
mure prominent. The under lip is protruded, and 
forms, indeed, the lower part of the face, which 
has scarcely the vestige of a chin. This degraded 



OCEAiNICA. 



class of human beings is generally difTused tliroiigh 
New-Guinea, and other large islands of the Pacific. 
Their habits have been very little observed, Eu- 
ropeans having only had occasional individuals 
presented to them as objects of curiosity. Little 
is recorded, except the ferocity with which they 
wage their ceaseless wars with the brown races, 
who have driven them from all the finer parts of 
the region. 

The brown, or Malay tribes, especially those 
which inhabit the islands of Malaysia, are short, 
squat, and robust, being reckoned, on an average, 
four inches lower than the European standard. 
There are considerable varieties of colour and ap- 
pearance, which can hardly be accounted for by 
the climate. These islanders are rather an ugly 
race ; their frame is deficient in symmetry ; their 
lower limbs large and heavy. The face is round ; 
the mouth wide, but with fine teeth ; the cheek- 
bones high, the nose short and small : the eyes are 
small, and always black. The hair is long, lank, 
harsh, and always black, and, except on the head, 
extremely deficient. 

The Malays of Sumatra, Java, Borneo, &c., are 
generally Mahometans, much adviicted to piracy ; 
in their disposition daring, restless, ferocious and 
vindictive ; to their enemies remorseless ; to friends 
capricious ; and to strangers extremely treacherous. 
Amongst them, gambling and games of hazard are 
pursued with an intense degree of passion. Every 
man goes armed with a crees or dagger, which he 
regards as the instrument, both of defending him- 
self and avenging his wrongs. The right of pri- 
vate revenge is claimed by every individual for 
injuries received either by himself, his family, or 
his tribe. When circumstances deprive him of any 
hope of avenging himself with ease and safety, he 



8 



INTRODUCTION. 



has recourse to that dreadful outrage peculiar to 
these islands, termed running a muck. The indi- 
vidual, under this impulse, draws bis dagger, and 
runs through the house or into the street, stabbing 
without distinction every person he meets, till he 
himself is either killed or taken. This movement 
is always sudden, indicated by no private looks or 
gestures, and from motives which it is frequently 
difficult to discover. The police-officers, in con- 
templation of these violences, are provided with 
certain forked instruments, with which they arrest 
and secure the offender. 

The inhabitants of the Polynesian islands, though 
of the same race, are much more distinguished for 
beauty and regularity of form, than those of Ma- 
laysia, Their complexion is sometimes not darker 
than that of the Spaniards and Italians. Social 
life, among these islanders, presents peculiar and 
picturesque aspects. Instead of those fierce and 
gloomy propensities which usually sway the breast 
of savage tribes, their manners are distinguished 
by a courtesy, gaiety, and amenity, which, com- 
bined with the beauty and abundance with which 
the land is gifted, made it appear to the first voy- 
agers like a terrestrial paradise. These flattering 
appearances, however, proved in many respects to 
be very fallacious. Amid the lavish kindness with 
which Europeans were greeted they soon discovered 
an universal propensity to pilfering, while the vir- 
tue of the female sex was not proof against nails, 
buttons, or the most insignificant toys. These 
faults were doubtless aggravated by the attractive 
nature of these new and tempting objects ; but it 
was, moreover, soon evident that their dances and 
other amusements were conducted in a manner the 
most revolting to decorum, and that there existed 
in Otaheite a society called arreoy^ who made it a 



OCEANICA? 



0 



regular system to have wives in commoD, and to 
put their offspring to death. Nor was infanticide 
the only practice marked by the ferocity of savage 
life. In many of the islands cannibalism is still 
practised ; and in the most polished, there remain 
traces of its former existence. The natives of the 
Sandwich and Friendly Islands were at first con- 
sidered more respectable ; but their character, on 
further acquaintance, was found to be stained with 
practices equally revolting. 

The native religion of these islanders may be 
ranked amongst the darkest forms of superstition. 
It not only gives no support to virtue, but affords 
full sanction to the most cruel, and dissolute 
practices. Even the flagitious society of arreoy 
was supposed to possess a peculiar sanctity. Not 
only animals were offered in profusion, but human 
victims were universally sacrificed on the blood 
stained altars, of the Polynesian divinities. One 
of the observances which most powerfully influenced 
their habitual existence was that of taboo ^ a species 
of prohibition, which a person, in honour of his 
favourite divinity, may impose upon himself, upon 
any part of his body, his house, his boat, or what- 
ever may belong to him. 

European intercourse, however^ during the pre- 
sent century, has effected a remarkable change upon 
these islands and their inhabitants. Among the 
most active agents in this good work, have been the 
various religious missionaries. Another cause may 
be found in the increased number of British and 
other whaling and trading vessels, which frequent, 
of late years, the different islands and ports of these 
regions. Hence the harbours of some, particularly 
the Sandwich Islands, are oftentimes crowded with 
vessels, and both English and American merchants 
have even settled in their ports* The mariners and 
B 2 



10 



lOTRODUCTION. 



missionaries, two very opposite classes of men, do 
not always act in unison, or report very favourably 
of each other ; but they have combined in produc- 
ing a somewhat grotesque mixture of the arts, 
manners, and civilization of Europe, with the rude 
licentious habits to which the people were pre- 
viously addicted. The missionaries have attained 
a predominant influence in many of these islands. 
Spacious churches have been built, which the natives 
frequent, decently dressed, and with a serious and 
reverential air. Still the missionaries candidly ad- 
mit that much is yet wanting, both as to Christian 
knowledge and conduct. The observance of the 
Sabbath, which is the most conspicuous part of 
their religious practice, seems, in a great measure, 
connected with their ancient veneration for any- 
thing tabooed. Captain Beech ey alleges that they 
venerate their bibles, in some degree, rather as 
household gods, means of mysterious protection, 
than as sources of instruction. Yet on the whole, 
it cannot be denied, that much good has been done 
by the pious labours of the missionaries ; the grossest 
superstitions have been demolished, human victims 
no longer bleed on their heathen altars, the arrmy 
society is broken up, infanticide has ceased, public 
decorum is generally observed, and many of the 
natives have become examples of piety. The mis- 
sionaries have introduced letters into these islands 
where, previously, nothing of that nature existed ; 
neither hierogUpliics, pictorial representations, nor 
symbols of any description. As soon as Christianity 
was established, they set on foot schools ; and the 
natives applied themselves with extraordinary 
ardour to this new acquisition. Mr. Ellis tells us, 
that aged chiefs and priests, and hardy warriors, 
with their spelling-books in their hands might be 
seen sitting hour after hour, on the benches in the 



OCEANIC A. 



11 



schools, by the side perhaps of some smiling boy 
or girl, by whom they were thankful to be taught 
the use of letters." Yet, after the first novelty 
was over, considerable difficulty has been found in 
obtaining regular attendance, which yet is anxiously 
desired, not only with a view to instruction, but 
for forming the youth to regular habits. Still a 
considerable number have thus obtained a competent 
knowledge of reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

The animal kingdom of Oceanica, affords only a 
few specimens of the great quadrupeds common to 
the other divisions of the globe. It possesses, how- 
ever, several species which are peculiar, and not 
found elsewhere. The most remarkable is the 
Ouran Outang, or wild man of the woods. He 
is not very common, and is mostly found in Borneo. 
He is from three to four and a half feet in height, 
and nearly covered with a brownish red hair. 
He is incapable of walking erect, but seems peculiar- 
ly fitted for climbing trees. In his habits he is 
very similar to a common monkey. The Pongo, 
supposed by some naturalists, to be the Ouran 
Outang of mature age, is from six to seven feet in 
height, and is very formidable from its strength 
and fierceness. This animal is a native of Sumatra 
and Borneo. The long-armed ape, or Siamang, is 
found in troops in Sumatra ; they are headed by a 
chief, who is considered invulnerable by the Ma- 
lays : these animals assemble at sunrise, and make 
the woods echo with their wild and peculiar cry. 
In captivity they are remarkably tractable. The 
singular Proboscis Monkey, is distinguished from 
all others by having a long projecting nose, giving 
to the head of the animal the appearance of a ludi- 
crous mask. 

The Malay Tapir is in size nearly equal to the 
Buffalo, and is particularly distinguished by its 



12 



INTRODUCTION. 



colour ; the fore and hind parts being glossy black, 
while the body has a broad and well defined belt 
of white extending nearly round it, resembling a 
piece of white linen thrown upon the animal. Its 
disposition is so mild and gentle that it will be- 
come as tame and familiar as a dog. The Baby- 
roussa Hog, found in Borneo and the adjacent 
islands, has much of the manners of the pig : it is 
said to swim remarkably well, and even to pass 
from one island to another : the tusks are enormous, 
and appear more like curled horns rising out of 
the jaws than teeth. The Javanese Genet, or 
Coffee rat, has obtained the latter name on account 
of its fondness for coffee : in pilfering the berry, it 
selects only the ripest and most perfect, which, being 
discharged unchanged, are eagerly collected by the 
natives, as the coffee is thus obtained without the 
tedious process of shelling. It also commits depre- 
dations on various descriptions of fruits, especially 
pine apples. If taken young it soon becomes 
gentle and docile, and readily subsists on either 
vegetable or animal food. 

The Kangaroo, of which there are many varieties, 
occurs only in New Holland : the largest is about 
the size of a full grown sheep, and moves by spring- 
ing about thirty feet at a leap, which it is enabled 
to do by the great length and strength of its hind 
legs. The female of all the different varieties is 
provided with an abdominal pouch, similar to that 
of the opossum, for the reception of the young. The 
flesh of this animal is much esteemed for food, 
which is said to resemble mutton. The Kangaroo 
is very timid, and flies from man, seeking instant 
concealment. The Dingo, or New Holland Dog 
is never known to bark : it is fierce, active, and 
voracious ; runs with its tail carried horizontally, 
the head elevated, and the ears erect. One that 



OCEANICA. 



13 



was brought to England leaped on the back of an 
ass, and, if help had not been at hand, would have 
destroyed it. The Emu is a native of New Hol- 
land, and is somewhat like the Cassowary. It is 
of the same general character as the ostrich, and is 
next to it in size ; it runs with great swiftness by 
the aid of its wings. The Emu is found in New 
Holland, and is sometimes hunted for its flesh, 
which has the flavour of beef. This bird has been 
transported to England, and is bred in the royal 
park at Windsor. The Black Swan is found in 
some of the islands : in form and habits it is simi- 
lar to the White Swan, but is smaller. 

The duck-billed Platypus is a most singular 
animal. It is about the size of a cat, covered with 
fur, and web -footed ; instead of a mouth furnished 
with teeth it has the bill of a duck. It lives in 
w^atery and muddy spots. The foot of the male is 
armed with a spur, through which passes a poison- 
ous liquor, rendering the animal dangerous : these 
'creatures not only lay eggs, but also suckle their 
young. 

The island of Sumatra contains several species of 
the Tiger ; two of the Rhinoceros, one of which is 
the two horned species ; also the Elephant, which, 
in a wild state is numerous in the woods : it is 
only at Acheen that a few have been trained to the 
service of man. Besides these animals, we might 
name, as inhabitants of the Oceanic Islands, parrots 
of great beauty, the bird of paradise, serpents which 
frequent the shores, and are often seen at sea, 
several miles from land ; and many others. Dogs, 
hogs, and rats were found by the first navi- 
gators in most of the large islands. Domestic 
cattle, rabbits, cats, mice, &c., have been introduced 
from Europe. 

The language of the great mass of the inhabitants 



14 



INTRODUCTiaX. 



of Ocean ica is the Malay and its Tarious dia- 
lects, which has been traced and found to exist 
more or less from Sumatra almost to the shores of 
South America. The varieties of this tongue are 
so similar, that the natives of islands far distant 
from each other converse with great ease when 
they happen to meet. The frequent occurrence of 
vowels and liquids renders it so soft and harmonious, 
that it has been called the Italian of the east. From 
this character and the extensive commerce of the 
Malays, it has become in some measure a universal 
lansuage on the coast and islands of Eastern Asia : 
it contains many words derived from the Sanscrit, 
Persian, and Arabian tongues. 

Oceanica comprises three ^eat divisions^ viz., 
Malaysia, Australasia, and Polynesia : the details 
of the first and last of these divisions will be here 
succintly considered under their respective heads ; 
the second, or Australasia, forming the subject of 
the present volume. Perhaps, at a future period, 
we may devote a volume to the consideration of 
tlie others. 

Oceanica extends from the north-west point of 
Sumatra to the 158th degree of west longitude ; and 
from the 40th degree of north, to the oOth degree 
of south latitude ; comprising 160 degrees of longi- 
tude, or about 11,000 miles in length, and 90 
degrees of latitude, or 6210 miles m breadth. 

MALAYSIA. 

Malaysia, called also the north-east Oceanica, and 
likewise the East Indian Archipelago, comprises 
those numerous islands lying south-westward from, 
and nearly approaching to, the great continent of 
Asia. The name is derived from the Malays, the 



MALAYSIA. 



15 



principal and predominant race in this region. 
The islands are Sumatra, Java, and Borneo, 
usually called the Sunda Isles, together with Cele- 
bes, the Moluccas or Spice Islands, and the Phi- 
lippines, besides other smaller groups and islands. 
Malaysia is bounded on the north by the Malayan 
Sea and the Bay of Bengal, south by Australasia, 
e^ist by Polynesia, and west by the Indian Ocean 
and the Chinese Sea. The population of these 
islands cannot, except in the instances of Java and 
the Philippines, be estimated with any degree of 
certainty. Tl^ whole is probably about 15,000,000, 
of whicli Java has been found to contain 7,000,000, 
the Philippine Islands, 3,000,000 ; Sumatra may 
be reckoned at 2,500,000; Borneo 500,000'; 
Celebes, and its appendages, 1,000,000 ; Bally, 
Lombok, Sooloo, &c., 500,000 ; and Timor and 
the Spice Islands, &c., about 500,000. 

The Sunda Inlands. — Sumatra, the largest of 
these islands, is separated by a narrow strait from 
the peninsula of Malaga, or Malacca. It is about 
1,000 miles long, and is intersected by the equator. 
A chain of high mountains, some of which are 
volcanic, extend through its whole length. The 
coasts are low, marshy, and unhealtliy. The 
country is divided into several petty kingdoms ; in 
the north part of the island is Acheen ; in tlie east 
Siak ; and to the south Palembang and Lampong. 
The governments are generally hereditary des- 
potisms. The interior is inhabited by several dif- 
ferent tribes, of v*^hom the Battas, accounted in 
some respects comparatively civilised, yet practise 
cannibalism among them. A part of the sentence 
of criminals, is to be eaten, which is invariably per- 
formed. Pepper is the principal product, which is 
raised and exported in large quantities; tlie other 
productions are cassia, sngo, rice, coffee, and various 



16 



INTRODUCTION. 



fruits. The Dutch have settlements at BencooleDj 
Palembang, and Padaug. 

Sumatra is begirt with a number of islands, of 
which those on the west side have a mountainous 
and rugged aspect. The inhabitants bear but little 
affinity to those of the great island ; they have 
more analogy to those of the eastern part of this 
region, and also to the islanders of Polynesia. 
Sago, instead of rice, is the staple food. The peo- 
ple called by the Malays, Mantaway, tatoo their 
skins, and speak a language quite different from 
that of Sumatra. Off the eastern goast are nu- 
merous islands, of whicli Pulo, Lingin, and Bin- 
tang have been long known to the Malays as a 
great seat both of commerce and piracy. They 
are ruled by a sultan resident at Lingin, who 
acknowledges the supremacy of the Dutch ; and 
has lately ceded to them, in full sovereignty, the 
Island of Rhio, separated from Bin tang by a narrow 
channel. Rhio being made a free port, has acquired 
great importance, both as an entrepot and a place 
of refreshment. Its population amounts to between 
seven and eight thousand. The Island of Banca 
derives its importance from its mines of tin. It 
was a dependency of Palembang, until the Dutch, 
a few years ago, erected it, with Billiton, into a 
separate residence or province. Billiton is distin- 
guished by its mines of iron, the most valuable in 
this quarter ; and nails made from it are exported 
to the neighbouring islands, 

Java, which lies south-east from Sumatra, is 
separated from it by the Straits of Sunda, and is 
650 miles in length. It is almost wholly volcanic, 
and is mountainous throughout its whole length : 
the northern coast is low and marshy, and the 
southern rocky and precipitous. The climate in 
the low parts is very unhealthy ; the soil is exceed- 



MALAYSIA. 



ingly fertile, producing sugar, coffee, rice, pepper, 
spices, indigo, cotton, and fruits. In no part of 
the world is vegetation more luxuriant. A great 
part of the island is under the government of the 
Dutch ; but the southern extremity, which is in 
the possession of the natives, contains the two 
native states of Jogo-Karta and Solo-Karta, frag- 
ments of the empire of Mataram, which formerly 
held sway over the greater part of Java. The 
two capitals, bearing the same naoie with the 
kingdoms, are each estimated to contain 100,000 
inhabitants. tThe whole population of the island is 
about 7,000,000. 

Batavia, tb.e capital, was formerly a large and 
magnificent city, but is now much decayed. It is 
built on a low spot, and the streets are traversed 
by canals, in the manner of the cities of Holland. 
It has long been famed for its unhealthiness, yet it 
still enjoys a large commerce, and contains about 
7 5,000 inhabitants. The other chief towns are 
Sourabaya, Cheribon, and Samarang. Bantam 
was formerly an important place, but is now de- 
cayed. Java has been divided into twenty districts 
or residences, including the Island of Madura, which 
forms one of them. The latter is governed by 
three native princes, under the control of the 
Dutch. The people of this island profess the Hin- 
doo religion. 

Eastward from Java, extends a range of islands 
of which they seem almost a continuation ; they are 
Bally, Lombok, S^imbawa, Jeendana, Mangeray, 
Floris, Sabrao, Solor, Lomblem, Pan tar, Ombay, 
Welter, and Timor ; the last is held jointly in pos- 
session by the Dutch and Portuguese. Coepang 
is the principal settlement of the first, and Deiby 
of the last. Sumbawa contains the kingdom of 



18 



INTRODUCTION. 



Bima, tributary to the Dutch, also an active vol- 
cano which sometimes commits dreadful ravages. 

Borneo is, next to Austrah'a, the largest island 
in the world, being between 800 and 900 miles in 
length, and TOO in breadth, it is well gifted by nature, 
and though directly under the equator, the moun- 
tains of the interior, 8000 feet high, giving rise to 
numerous streams, entirely secure it from aridity. 
Its products are rice, pepper, cinnamon, coffee, and 
gold, and diamonds are found in abundance. The 
inhabitants of the coasts are Malays, Javanese, and 
Bugis, or natives of the Celebes, alii of whom are 
Mahometans. The interior is divided between in- 
dependent tribes, between whom and the people of 
the coast there is constant war. The principal 
trade is at Benjur Massin, a port of about 8000 
inhabitants, the capital of a kingdom under the 
control of the Dutch. Borneo, the capital of a 
state which, during its greatness, gave its name to 
the whole island, is now much decayed, but still 
contains from twelve to fifteen thousand inhabitants. 
Succadana, and Pontiana, are places of some trade ; 
the latter with about 6000 inhabitants. 

Eastward of the coast of Borneo extends the 
Sooloo archipelago, containing twenty-seven islands, 
with an estimated population of 350,000 inhabit- 
ants, who are principally supported by piracy ; 
and from 400 to 500 vessels, whose crews amount 
to 12,000 men, are continually issuing forth in this 
fierce and perilous occupation ; the Sooloos are the 
Algerines of the eastern seas. 

Celebes lies east of Borneo ; it is very irregular 
in shape, and contains 55,000 square miles. It is 
mountainous, with several volcanoes. The inhabit- 
ants are active, industrious, and robust, and are 
madly devoted to games of chance. The popula- 
tion is estimated at about one million souls, the 



MALAYSIA. 



19 



vast majority of whom profess the Mahometan 
faith. The government is an elective monarchy, 
the real power being in the hands of the hereditary 
chiefs. The Maccassars and Bugis are the two 
pt^incipal races, the latter are at present the rulers ; 
those of Borneo are the most warlike, and those of 
Wagoo the most commercial. Maccassar is a city 
and territory at the south end of the island, in pos- 
session of the Dutch. The soil is exceedingly fer- 
tile, producing rice, cotton, cloves, nutmegs, sago, 
ebony, &c. 

The Moluccas or Spice Islands were originally 
the small islands of Ternate, Tidor, Motir, Machian, 
and Batchian, lying off the west coast of Gilolo, 
but they now include the latter, together with Oby, 
Ceram, Amboyna, Booro, and the Banda isles ; 
they derive celebrity from producing the precious 
commodity of cloves, nutmegs, and mace. Gilolo, 
also called Almaheiera, is the largest of the group, 
and presents the usual spectacle in those regions of a 
rude people governed by a number of turbulent 
chieftains. Ceram is mostly under the power of a 
single prince, who is tributary to the Dutch. Am- 
boyna is the chief European settlement, and is the 
only island where, until within these few years, 
the clove was permitted to be raised. The town 
of Amboyna contains about 8000 inhabitants. 

The Philippine Islands form an extensive group 
of two large, and nine small islands, situated north 
east of Borneo. Few countries are more favoured 
as to soil and climate. Though placed but little 
north of the equator, the height of the mountains 
and the ocean breezes preserve them from suffer- 
ing under any severe or scorching heat. They 
produce most of the staple tropical articles, sugar, 
rice, tobacco, coffee, cinnamon, &c. The largest of 
this group are Luzon and Mindanao : the others 



20 



INTRODUCTION. 



are Samar, Negros, Leyte, Mindoro, Panay, Bohol, 
Zebu, Masbate, and Burlos. The islands belong 
to Spain : the great majority, however, of the in- 
habitants are of the native races, of which the 
most improved are the Tagalas ; another is the 
Biscayans ; there are also in the interior of the 
larger islands a considerable number of negroes of the 
Papuan race. Manilla is the capital of Luzon and 
of the whole group, and contains, with its suburbs, 
about 200,000 inhabitants. Its imports and ex- 
ports are each upwards of one million dollars 
annually. 

The Cows, or Keeling Islands, are several small 
islands lying in the usual track of European and 
American ships to China; they are about 700 
miles south east from the western entrance of the 
straits of Sunda, and about fifteen years ago were 
taken possession of by two English gentlemen, 
whose intentions were, by the introduction of la- 
bourers, to cultivate and render them productive. 
The climate though warm, is salubrious, and the 
water good and abundant. The chief native pro- 
duct is the cocoa-nut, which abounds in great pro- 
fusion. Many plants, fruits, &c., suitable to the 
climate have been introduced, and found to succeed 
well. 

POLYNESIA. 

Polynesia, signifying the many isles, or Eastern 
Oceanica,is the name now generally given to the nu- 
merous groups of islands, with which a great portion 
of the Pacific Ocean is studded. While the islands 
composing Australasia are of such magnitude as to 
approacli the character of continents, those of Poly- 
nesia are so small that most of them can scarcely 



POLYNESIA, 



21 



aspire above the diminutive appellation of islets : 
yet they are so numerous, and follow in such close 
succession that they may properly be considered as 
a region of the globe, bearing a peculiar aspect and 
character. 

This division of Oceanica comprises the Ladrone 
and Caroline Islands, and those of the Central 
Archipelago ; also the Sandwich, Marquesas or 
Washington, Society, Georgian, Pearl, and Pal- 
liser's Islands, together with the Friendly, the 
Austral, and Hervey's Islands, besides many other 
smaller groups and scattered islands. The popu- 
lation of this region has never been computed ex- 
cept by the most uncertain conjectures. Those 
formed by Cook and other navigators would lead 
to the belief that a million and a half might be 
about the amount ; but more recent observations, 
particularly those of the missionaries, leave no 
doubt that this number is greatly exaggerated, and 
that a little more than half a million will be a more 
accurate approximation. 

The Ladrone or Marian Islands lie north of the 
Caroline, and were the first known of the islands 
in this region, having been discovered by Magellan 
in the year 1512. They are covered for the most 
part with the rich vegetation peculiar to this 
climate, and have been highly extolled by some 
navigators as forming almost a paradise. The 
original inhabitants have been nearly exterminated in 
their wars with the Spaniards, who endeavoured 
to impose upon them their yoke and religion. The 
climate is mild and healthful, though, like the 
Carolines, subject to violent hurricanes. The people 
of the Ladrone islands possess canoes which are 
the admiration of sailors, being so skilfully con- 
structed as to sail with a side wind twenty miles 
an hour. 



22 



INTRODUCTION, 



The Caroline Islands form an extensive and 
numerous group on the north side of the equator ; 
they extend from east to west upwards of thirty 
degrees of longitude, and are among the most im- 
perfectly known of any islands in the Pacific Ocean, 
and are situated in a most tempestuous ocean, ex- 
posed to frequent hurricanes, some of which often 
sweep away the entire produce of an island, yet 
the people are still more at home on the waves 
than even the rest of the South Sea islanders, and 
are distinguished hy their skill in navigation. The 
greater part of the Caroline Islands are low and of 
coral formation. 

The Palaos, or Pelew Islands, are the most 
western group of the Carolines. They are of mode- 
rate elevation, and are well wooded : they became 
an object of interest in Great Britain by the ship- 
wreck, in the year 1783, of Captain Wilson in the 
Antelope, when he and his crew were received, and 
their wants supplied with the most generouskindness. 
Abba Thule, the king, w^ith an enlightened desire 
to improve his people by a knowledge of the arts 
and attainments of Europe, sent along with the 
captain his son, prince Le Boo, who delighted the 
inhabitants of London by the amiable simplicity of 
his manners ; but, unfortunately, he was seized 
with the small-pox and died. In Captain Wilson's 
narrative, the Pelew Islanders were represented in 
the most pleasing colours, but subsequent navi- 
gators who have visited these shores, draw a com - 
pletely different picture, representing these 
people as displaying all the bad qualities incident 
to savage life. 

Central Archipelago. — This name has been ap- 
plied from their central situation to a number of 
detached groups, extending to a great distance, 
chiefly to the south-east from the Caroline Islands, 



POLYNESIA. 



23 



consisting mostly of Mitchell's, Ellis's, and De 
Peyster s groups, the Taswell's islands, also Gil- 
bert's archipelago, Scarborough's range, and the 
Mulgrave islands : the two last form a group so 
closely adjoining on the west to the Carolines, that 
they can scarcely be considered otherwise than as 
a branch of that great archipelago. They com- 
prise a vast number of small islands, in many cases 
mere rocks, of which the western division is termed 
the Radack, and the eastern the Ralick chain. 
Nearly all the islands forming the great Central 
Archipelago are populated to the limited resources 
which nature affords. The natives are generally 
described as friendly, courteous, and amiable, free 
from the thievish propensities and dissolute conduct 
which are common in many of the other islands. 
These are generally destitute of land animals, ex- 
cept rats, which are numerous, and often eaten as 
food. 

The Sandwich Islands^ now the most important 
of any in this quarter of the globe in relation to the 
civilised world, have long been known as a place of 
resort for whaling ships, and have also for some 
time past excited general iiiterest on account of the 
important change taking place in the manners, cus- 
toms, and character of the people. These islands 
are ten in number, of w^hich eight only are inhabited. 
They form as it were a solitary cluster, far to the 
north and east of the principal ranges of this 
region. 

Hawaii, or Owhyhee, the largest of this group, 
and also the largest island in Polynesia, occupies 
4500 square miles of the 7000 constituting the area 
of the whole. The aspect of these islands is grand 
and sublime ; some of the mountains rise to an 
alpine height, and liave their summics wrapped in 
perpetual snow : those of Mouna Koah and Mouna 



24 



INTRODUCTION. 



Ron, are the most elevated of any insular moun- 
tains in the world, being respectively 18,400, and 
16,47 4 feet in height. Volcanoes are numerous in 
this group, and many of them in constant activity. 
The soil is exceedingly fertile, and yields abundantly 
the bread-fruit, sugar-cane, cocoa-nut, sweet po- 
tatoes, rice, &c. The natives are tall and robust, 
especially the chiefs, who are here, as in most of 
the other islands, a superior race : they had long 
evinced a strong desire to become acquainted with 
European arts and civilization, and in 1819, they 
renounced idolatry and burned their idols : this, 
and the circumstance of several of the natives 
having been educated in England, induced the 
missionary societies to send out ministers of the 
gospel to impart to them the truths of the Christian 
religion, and the arts of civilization : the most sig- 
nal success has attended their exertions, and strong 
hopes may now be indulged that the people of these 
islands will, at no remote period, be entitled to 
take their place among the civilised nations of the 
earth. A large proportion of the population have 
been instructed in reading, writing, and arithmetic : 
churches have been erected ; the printing press has 
been for some years in operation, at which school 
books, the scriptures, newspapers, and various 
moral and religious periodicals are printed in the 
language of the country ; the useful arts have been 
introduced, and a gradual improvement in the 
morals and manners of the people has taken place. 
The town of Honolulu, in the island of Oahu, 
contains about 6000 inhabitants, of which number 
upwards of 200 are English and Americans. Great 
commercial activity prevails here; many European 
and American ships, &c., are always in the port : 
a considerable number of small vessels also belong 
to the natives. Some of the houses of Honolulu 



POLYNESIA. 



25 



are built of stone ; and hotels, boarding houses, a 
daily ordinary, billiards, and other amusements, 
strikingly testify the transportation of English 
habits into this remote and lately savage region. 

The following table shows the area and popu- 
lation of the separate islands : 



Square Miles. Population, 

Hawaii (Owhyhee) . . 4500 88,000 

Maui(Mowee) . . 600 22,000 

Oahu (Woahoo) . . 520 23,000 

Kauai, or Taucii (Aiooi) 520 15,000 

Morakais (Morotoi) . 170 4,000 

Ransi (Lani) . . 100 2,500 

Niihau . . . 100 2,000 

Kahurawu . . 60 600 



- Total 6570 157,100 
Tawia and Morikini (un- 
inhabited) . 430 



The Marquesas or Washington^ called also the 
Mendana Islands^ consists of two groups, of which 
the most eastern, long the only part known, is more 
properly the Marquesas Islands ; they were first 
discovered in 1596, and after being long forgotten, 
were again discovered by Captain Cook. The 
more northerly group was first visited by Captain 
Ingraham of Boston in 1791, and in 1792 by the 
French navigator Marcland, who called them Re- 
volution Islands ; but the discovery of the former 
being prior, the name of Washington Islands has 
been generally recognized. They have also been 
called the Ingraham and the North Marquesas 
Islands. They are all mountainous, fertile, and 
well watered. Nature, in providing the people 
with the bread-fruit, the cocoa-nut, and the 
lemon, affords them a plentiful subsistence almost 
without labour. The men of these islands are 
c 



26 



INTRODUCTION. 



among the most finely formed of the known human 
race ; their complexion is but little darker than 
that of Europeans, but is visible only in the youth, 
for the tattooing practised all over the Pacific Ocean 
is carried on to such a pitch, that the skin of an 
adult becomes the mere canvas of a picture. The 
tattooing is commenced at twelve or thirteen years, 
but it is not until thirty or thirty-five that the 
operation is finished ; by that time their body is 
in general entirely covered with such devices as 
may from time to time strike their fancy. The 
women are handsome, and generally possess pleas- 
ing features, but at the same time, they have an air 
of boldness and efirontery, and hold virtue in very 
little estimation. The islands are divided amono: a 
number of independent chiefs and tribes, who are 
frequently at war with each other, which they 
carry on with the greatest ferocity. The mission- 
aries have made some attempts to introduce Chris- 
tianity and civilization, but, though heard with 
patience, their success has been but very trifling. 

The Society^ or Leeward Islands^ are Raiatca, 
Huahine, Tahaa, Borabora, Manpila, or Lord 
Home's Island, Maurua, Tabai, and the Fenuara 
or Scilli Islands. This group was called the So- 
ciety Islands by the discoverer. Captain Cook, in 
honour of the Eoyal Society, at whose suggestion 
the voyage of discovery was undertaken. They 
have a good soil and climate, but do not present 
any very striking distinctive character. On the 
five first named islands there are missionaries re- 
siding, who have efiiscted an important change in 
the manners and character of the people. The 
Society and Georgian Islands are frequently de- 
scribed under the name of the former ; the groups 
are, however, geographically, as well as politically, 
distinct. 



POLYNESIA. 



27 



The Georgian^ or Windward Islands compri^ 
Tahiti or Otahiti, Eimeo, Tabnaemanu, or Sir 
Charles Sander s Island, Tetuoroa, Meatica. These 
were discovered by Captain Wallis, who crossed 
the Pacific about 170 years ago, and subsequently 
by Captain Cook, who affixed the native name of 
Tahiti to the principal island of the group. This 
cluster of islands is about seventy miles to the east- 
ward of the Society Islands ; these two clusters 
have attracted perhaps more attention than any 
other in the Pacific Ocean. They are fruitful and 
beautiful islands, and present the first example of a 
people converted to Christianity in this quarter of 
the globe — an event accomplished by the labours 
of Christian missionaries, through a long series of 
discouragements and dangers. The people are 
now as much distinguished by their regard for 
religion and morality as they once were for idolatry 
and licentiousness, and are now making rapid ad- 
vances in general knowledge and useful arts. Ta- 
hiti, the largest of the group, is about 108 miles 
in circuit, and has a population of about 1500. 
The interior rises into mountains, which, with the 
exception of those in the Sandwich Islands, are the 
most lofty in this region ; trees and verdure clothe 
their sides, almost to the summit. The island is 
nearly an entire forest of bread-fruit, cocoa-nut, 
lemon, and other valuable trees, a few spots only 
being cleared for the cultivation of the yam. The 
fruits ripen at different times, according as the 
mountain slopes have a northern or southern ex- 
posure. Eimeo, the next in size to Tahiti, is 
cJiiefly distinguished as being stiil the centre of 
that European and Christian civilization which 
originated there. It contains the South Sea Aca- 
demy, a printing office, and a cotton factory. 

The entire population of these two groups of 



28 



INTRODUCTION* 



islands (tlie Society and the Georgian) is calculated 
at the present time to be 70,000 ; but it is certain 
that at one period they must have far exceeded that 
number. Captain Cook, indeed, estimates the 
population of Tahiti alone at 200,000. The de- 
vastations of disease, infanticide, frequent wars, 
human sacrifices, and the depopulating influence 
of vicious habits, have undoubtedly been the cause 
of this enormous decrease in the population ; and 
it is not irrationally supposed, even by the islanders 
themselves, that but for the humanising and melio- 
rating influence of^ Christianity upon them, the in- 
habitants, at no distant period, would have been 
totally annihilated. 

The Pearly Paurnotu^ Loid Islands^ and Danger-- 
ous Archipelago^ are the several names given to an 
almost numberless range of islets, extending east 
and south-east of the Georgian Islands ; some of 
them are thinly peopled, some entirely deserted, 
and some others alternately settled and abandoned. 
The natives are but little known, as the slender 
supplies to be obtained, and the dangerous nature 
of the navigation, have induced mariners to sail 
through them as quickly as possible. The Gam- 
bier Islands, five in number, and the most southern 
of this group, contain, according to Captain Beech ey, 
about 1000 inhabitants; they are all most deter- 
mined thieves. 

The Palliser Islands lie north-east from Tahiti. 
The principal is Anaa or Chain Island. The in- 
habitants were formerly notorious for their super- 
stitious and vicious propensities, but through the 
influence of the missionaries they have renounced 
idolatry, destroyed their idols, and have become, 
at least in name. Christians. The language is 
radically the same as Tahiti. 

Herveys^ or Coolcs Island^ situated nearly west 



# 



POLYNESIA. 29 

from the Georgian group, are small, low, and of coral 
formation ; they are deficient in water, yet they 
are tolerably well peopled and cultivated. The 
state of society very much resembles that of Tahiti, 
and the Christian missionaries have succeeded in 
converting a great number of the inhabitants to 
their faith. The principal islands of this group 
are Sharraia, Atutake, Rarotogna, Mauti, &c. 

The Austral or Raivaimi Islands are situated at 
from 400 to 600 miles south from Tahiti ; they are 
all small, and scattered at some distance from each 
other. The inhabitants are like those of Tahiti, 
and speak a similar language. Till within these 
few years, they were grossly ignorant and super- 
stitious, but have been greatly changed, chiefly by 
the pious labours of native Christian teachers from 
Tahiti. The entire population of some of the 
islands have been baptised, and in all of them 
churches and schools have been established. This 
group comprises Raivaivai, Raroton, Riraatura, 
Rurutu, Tabuai, and Rapa. 

The Friendly Islands are an extensive group, 
lying between New Caledonia and the Georgian 
Islands; they are reckoned at 150 in number, and 
in their most extensive sense, comprise the Navi-- 
gators, Tonga, Habaai, and Feejee Islands. The 
character of the native has been drawn in more 
flattering colours than that of almost any other 
people in the Pacific Ocean. The name given to 
them by Captain Cook expresses his opinion of 
their disposition. Subsequent visitors have, how- 
ever, represented them as cruel and ferocious. The 
men are very muscular and broad shouldered, 
and the women often deficient in delicacy of form 
and feature, but many of both sexes present models 
of almost perfect beauty; and their expression is 
generally mild and agreeable. In some of the 



80 INTRODUCTION. 

islands the exertions of the missionaries have been 
eminently successful. In the Tonga and Habaai 
groups about 3000 children are instructed in the 
schools, and the church numbers upwards of 1500 
communicants. In the Nayigator's Island Chris- 
tianity bids fair to obtain a steadfast footing among 
the people, aud in Laquha or Logaba Island, one 
of the Feejees, idolatry has been entirely abolished 
by the labours of the missionaries. 

The Navigator's or Samona Islands^ the most 
northern of the Friendly Archipelago, are eight in 
number, divided into two clusters. They are 
fertile, w^ell w^atered, and abound in poultry and 
hogs, and appear to be populous. The interior of 
the largest of these islands is elevated, and the 
rocks seem to exhibit marks of volcanic origin, but 
the mountains are clothed to the summit with lofty 
trees, and the wooded valleys beneath, watered by 
numberless streams and rills, present an enchanting 
landscape. 

The Feejee Islands^ ^yi^^g south-east of the Navi- 
gator s group, are but imperfectly known. They 
are considerably larger than the latter, and are 
equally fertile and populous, and the people are 
considered more ferocious than any of the others. 
Pavo, or Tacanova, is upw^ards of fifty leagues in 
circuit : it belongs to the class of high islands, be- 
ing traversed by mountain ridges, though several 
islands of the group are low, and encircled by coral 
rocks. Naviheelavoo and Mywoolaari are the 
next in dimensions to Tacanova. 

The most southern of the Friendly Archipelago 
are the Tonga Islands^ the principal of w^iich are 
Tongataboo, Booa, and Armaanooka, called by 
Tasman, their first discoverer, Amsterdam, ]\Iiddle- 
bury, and Hotterdam. These islands, like the 
others of this range, are very fertile and populous. 



POLYNESIA. 



31 



The natives cultivate fifteen different varieties of 
bread-fruit, yams of several kinds, and other roots. 
The animals are hogs and dogs. In another group 
is Tefooa, a mountainous island, containing a vol- 
cano, which manifests some degree of activity. 

Lefuga, or Lifuka, the principal of the Habaai 
Islands, was long the residence of a chief, who held 
sway over the others. A mission has been suc- 
cessfully conducted here for some years. Yavaoo, 
Cocoa-nut Island, and Amargura, to the north of 
the Habaai group, are all exceedingly fertile, pro- 
ducing bread-fruit and cocoa-nut trees in abund- 
ance. They are all inhabited. 

Pitcalrns Island^ a small detached spot, lying 
south-east from Tahiti, has attracted a remarkable 
degree of interest, in consequence of having been 
selected as the place of retreat of the mutineers of 
the Bounty, whose fate was for so many years un- 
known, and from the pleasing feelings excited on 
the discovery of their virtuous and amiable pos- 
terity a comparatively short time ago. A number 
of the natives, in consequence of the scanty supply 
of water in the island, emigrated to Tahiti, but 
being disappointed in their expectations, they re- 
turned to their former happy home. The latest 
published account represents their numbers to be 
about ninety individuals. 

Easter Island^ c2X\%di also Teafe, and Yaihou, is 
the most eastern of the Polynesian range, and is 
about twenty miles in circuit. The natives are 
estimated to amount to about 1500. The males 
tattoo themselves so as to have the appearance of 
wearing brooches. This island was formerly cele- 
brated for its gigantic busts, of which Captain 
Cook found only two remaining ; they have now 
disappeared, a few heaps of rubbish only being left, 
to mark the spot they occupied. 



32 



INTRODUCTION. 



The following is tlie mode of tattooing the skin, 
so common amongst most savage nations, and prac- 
tised to a great extent in the South Sea Islands. 
The operation is performed by regular professors of 
the art, and is a very profitable occupation. The 
dye employed is the kernel of the candle-nut, called 
by the natives tiair% which is burnt to charcoal, . and 
then mixed with oil. The tattooing-stick consists 
of a piece of sharp pointed bone, fastened to the end 
of a small stick. Another stick, somewhat heavier, 
is used for striking the other in the process of per- 
foration. The figure or pattern to be tattooed is 
first carefully drawn upon the skin with a piece of 
charcoal, and the performer having immersed the 
point of the sharp bone in the colouring matter^ 
which is a beautiful jet, strikes it smartly with the 
stick in his right hand, aod thus inserts the edge 
into the flesh. This operation is attended with 
great suffering, and few of the natives can endure 
it so long as to have an entire figure finished at one 
sitting. The consequences of it, indeed, are fre- 
quently fatal. The chest is the part of the body 
most profusely tattooed, and the beauty and minute- 
ness of the representations sometimes made are 
truly astonishing. Mr. Ellis remarks, Every 
variety of figure is to be seen here. Cocoa-nut 
and bread-fruit trees, with convolvulus wreaths 
hanging round them, boys gathering the fruit, men 
engaged in battle, in manual exercise, triumphing 
over a fallen foe, or, as I have frequently seen, they 
are represented as carrying a human sacrifice to 
the temple. Every kind of animal — goats, dogs, 
fowls, and fish, may at times be seen on this part 
of the body; muskets, swords, pistols, clubs, spears, 
and other weapons of war, are also stamped on their 
arms or chest." 



33 



AUSTRALIA. 

Australia, or New Holland, is situated in the 
Pacific Ocean, and forms the largest island in the 
known world. Lying between 10 degrees 80 
minutes and 89 degrees of south latitude, and 113 
degrees and 153 of east longitude, it forms an ex-- 
tent of land, which, from its geographical position, 
and its natural productions, abounds in interest both 
to the philosophical inquirer, and to all such as may 
wish to make it the place of their future residence. 
It extends in length from east to west 8000 miles ; 
and in breadth from north to south 2000 miles, 
containing a superficial area of more than 3,000,000 
square miles, with a coast line of 8000. In shape 
it is an irregular oval ; appearing to be bounded for 
the most part by a ridge of steep mountains, of 
greater or less elevation, which extend around the 
coast, varying in distance from the shore, sometimes 
approaching within thirty miles of the sea, at other 
times extending back to perhaps four times that 
distance. The country behind this range is, with 
the exception of the New South ¥7ales territory, 
and a part of tlie south east coast, a complete terra 
incog7iita ; and from what has been observed on the 
south east shore, it may be inferred that it is a vast 
level plain ; it would be a more rational inference, 
however, to suppose that the country consists of 
natural terraces or steppes, as in South Africa. 

Australia has been divided into four principal 
parts, discovered at different periods, each possessed 
c 2 



34 



AUSTRALASIA. 



of a different history, though all have been employ- 
ed for the purposes of colonisation by the ovep 
crowded population of Europe. These divisions 
are. New South Wales, or Eastern Australia, on 
the east ; South Australia, in the centre ; the Swan 
River Settlement, or Western Australia, on the 
West ; and North Australia. 

NEW SOUTH WALES. 

The colony of New South Wales is situated on 
the eastern coast of New Holland. This island was 
discovered by Don Pedro Fernandiz de Quiros, a 
Spanish nobleman, in 1605-7. He appears to have 
made the land in the vicinity of Torres Straits, and 
named it Terra del Espiritus Santo ; it accordingly 
got the name of Australia of the Holy Spirit; but 
from the number of Dutch navigators by whom it 
was visited, and whose voyages, if not earlier made, 
seem either to have been the earliest recorded, or the 
most generally made known, styled this extensive 
island New Holland. The Spanish monarch, at 
the period of this, discovery by De Quiros, was too 
much occupied with the great acquisitions made to 
his foreign possessions by the splendid discoveries of 
the celebrated Christopher Columbus, to attend to 
the progress of eastern discovery, and additional por- 
tions of this hitherto unknown region of the globe 
were successively made known by the spirit of 
<x)mmercial enterprise, or the good fortune of ad- 
venturous mariners. The enterprising Dampier 
was the first Englishman by wdiom the coast of 
New Holland w^as visited. Dampier received his 
knowledge of navigation among the buccaneers of 
America, and having made a cruise against the 
Spaniards, he doubled Cape Horn from the east, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



35 



stretched towards the equator, and fell in with this 
extensive island. He made an accurate survey of 
its shores, and on his return to England, he pre- 
sented it to the Earl of Pembroke, and by this 
means gained the patronage of King William III. 

, But the celebrated Captain James Cook was the 
first individual who gave the most extensive infor- 
mation, and dispelled many illusions regarding this 
exterisive region during his first and third voyage?, 
in the years 1770 and 1777. The eastern coast 
was almost entirely unexplored previous to his 
visiting its shores ; but after a carefuljexamination, 
he was satisfied of the existence of a vast island, 
almost equal in extent to the whole continent of 
Europe, which he made known to the world. 

The climate of this colony, particularly in the 
island districts, is highly salubrious, although the 
heats in summer are sometimes excessive, the ther- 
mometer occasionally rising in the shade to ninety, 
and even to a hundred degrees and upwards of 
Fahrenlieit. This however, happens only during 
the hot winds; and these do not prevail upon an 
average more than three or four days in the year. 
The seasons of New South Wales are the opposite 
o€ those in England — January being the middle of 
summer and July of Winter; the spring and autumn 
are brief but well defined ; the winter of a bracing 
coolness. 

During the summer months of December, January, 
and February, the mean heat is about 80 degrees 
at noon. This it must be admitted, is a degree of 
heat that would be highly oppressive to English- 
men, were it not that the Seabreeze sets in regular- 
ly about nine o'clock in the morning, and blows 
with considerable force from the north-east till 
about six or seven o'clock in the evening. It is 
succeeded during the night by the land breeze from 



36 



AUSTRALASIA. 



the mountains which varies from west south-west 
to west. In very hot days the sea breeze often 
veers round to the north and blows a gale. In this 
case it continues with considerable violence, fre- 
quently for a day or two, and is thus succeeded, not 
by the regular land breeze, but by a cold southerly 
squall. The hot winds blow from the north-west, 
and doubtless imbibe their heat from the immense 
tract of country which they traverse. While tliey 
prevail the sea and land breezes entirely cease. 
They seldom however continue for more than tv/elve 
hours at a time, and are always superseded by a 
cold southerly gale, generally accompanied with 
rain. The thermometer then sinks sometimes as 
low as sixty degrees, and a variation of temperature 
of from twenty to thirty degrees takes place in half 
an hour. These southerly gales usually last at this 
season from twelve to twenty-four hours, and then 
give way to the regular sea and land breezes. 

During^ the summer months violent storms of 
thunder and lightning are frequent, and the heavy 
falls of rain which take place on these occasions, 
tend considerably to refresh the country, of which 
the verdure in all but low and moist situations 
entirely disappears. At this season the most un- 
pleasant part of the day is the interval which 
elapses between the cessation of the land breeze, 
and the setting in of the sea. This happens 
generally between six and eight o'clock in the 
morning, when the thermometer is upon an average 
at about seventy-two degrees. During this interval 
the sea is as smooth as glass, and not a zephyr is 
found to disport even among the topmost boughs of 
the loftiest trees. 

The three autumn months are March, April, and 
May, The weather in March is generally very 
'unsettled. This month may, in fact, be considered 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



37 



the rainy season, and has "been more fertile iu floods 
than any other of the year. The thermometer 
varies during the day about fifteen degrees, being 
at daylight as low as from fifty-five to sixty 
degrees, and at noon as high as from seventy to 
seventy-five degrees. The sea and land breezes at 
this time become very feeble, although they occa- 
sionally prevail during the whole year. The usual 
winds from the end of March to the beginning of 
September are from south to west. 

The weather in the commencement of April is 
frequently showery, but towards the middle it gra- 
dually becomes more settled, and towards the con- 
elusion perfectly clear and serene. The thermome- 
ter at the beginning of the month varies from 
seventy-two to seventy-four degrees at noon, and 
from the middle to the end gradually declines to 
sixty-six, and sometimes to sixty degrees. In the- 
morning it is as low as fifty-two degrees, and fires 
become in consequence general throughout the 
colony. 

The weather in the month of May is truly de- 
liglitfaL The atmosphere is perfectly cloudless, and 
the mornings and evenings become with the ad- 
vance of the month more chilly, and render a good 
fire a highly coirifortable and charming guest. 
Even during the middle of the day the most violent 
exercise may be taken without inconvenience. The 
thermometer at sun-rise is under fifty degrees, and 
seldom above sixty degrees at noon. 

The three winter months are June, July, and 
August. During this interval the mornings and 
evenings are very chilly, and the nights excessively 
cold. Hoar frosts are frequent, and become the 
more severe the further you advance into the in- 
terior. Ice half an inch thick is found at the dis- 
tance of twenty miles from the coast. Very little 



38 



AUSTRALASIA. 



rain falls at this season, but the dews are very heavy 
when it does not freeze, and tend considerably to 
preserve the young crops from the effects of 
drought. Fogs too are frequent and dense in low 
damp situations, and on the banks of the rivers. 
The mean temperature at day-light is from forty to 
forty-five degrees, and at noon from fifty- five to 
sixty degrees. 

The Spring months are September, October, and 
November. In the beginning of September, the 
fogs still continue, the nights are cold, but the days 
clear and pleasant. Towards the close of this 
month, the cold begins very sensibly to moderate. 
Light showers occasionally prevail, accompanied 
with thunder and lightning. The thermometer at 
the beginning of the month is seldom above sixty 
degrees at noon, but towards the end frequently 
rises vO seventy degrees. 

In October there are also occasional showers, but 
the weather upon the whole is clear and pleasant. 
The days gradually become warmer, and the light- 
ning, and north-west winds are to be apprehended. 
The sea and land breezes again resume their full 
sway. The thermometer at sun-rise varies from 
sixty to sixty-five degrees, and at noon is frequently 
up to eighty degrees. 

In November the >veather may be again called 
hot. Dry parching winds prevail as the month ad- 
vances, and squalls of thunder and lightning with 
rain or hail. The thermometer at day-light is 
seldom under sixty-five degrees, and frequently at 
noon, rises to eighty, eighty- four, and even to 
ninety degrees. 

Such is the temperature throughout the year at 
Port Jackson. In the highland districts to the east- 
ward of the mountains, the thermometer is upon an 
average five degrees lower in the morning, and the 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



39 



same number of degrees higher at noon throughout 
the winter season, but during the summer months, 
it is "five degrees higher at all hours of the day. 
On the mountains themselves, and in the country 
to the westward of them, the climate, in con- 
sequence of their superior elevation, is much more 
temperate. Heavy falls of snow take place during 
tlie winter, and remain sometimes for many days on 
the summits of the hills ; but in the valleys the 
snow immediately dissolves. The frosts too are 
much more severe, and the winters are of longer 
duration. All the seasons indeed are more distinct- 
ly marked to the westward of the mountains, and 
bear a much stronger resemblance to the corres- 
ponding ones in this country. 

From the foregoing account of the state of the 
weather and temperature during the various seasons 
of the year, it will be seen that the climate of New 
South Wales is upon the whole highly salubrious 
and delightful. If the summer should be con- 
sidered a little too hot for the British constitution 
(which we will show that it is not,) it will be re- 
membered that the extreme heats, which have been? 
noticed as happening during the north-west vv^inds, 
are of but short continuaoce; and that the sea and 
land breezes which prevail at this season in an al- 
most uninterrupted succession, moderate the tem- 
perature so eiiectualiy, that even new-comers are 
but little incommoded by it, and the old residents 
experience no inconvenience from it whatever. The 
sea breeze indeed is not so sensibly fAt in the 
interior, as on the coast, by reason of the great 
extent of forest which it has to traverse, before the 
inhabitants of the inland districts can receis^e the 
benefit of it. This circumstance not only diniinishes 
its force, but also deprives it in a great iiieasuro 
of that refreshing coolness which it imparts, when 



40 



AUSTRALASIA. 



inhaled fresh from the bosom of the ocean. The 
heat consequently in the interior, particularly in low 
situations, is much more intense than on the coast ; 
but by way of compensation for the advantage 
which in this respect the districts in the yicinity of 
the sea possess over the inland ones, these latter are 
from the same causes, that impede the approach of 
the sea breeze, exempt from the sudden and violent 
variations of temperature which are occasioned by 
the southerly winds, and are without doubt the 
reason why pulmonary affections are so much more 
prevalent in Sydney than in the interior. The hot 
season, however, which is undoubtedly the most un- 
healthy part of the year, does not, as will have been 
perceived, continue above four months. The re- 
maining eight possess a temperature so highly 
moderate and congenial to the human constitution, 
that the climate of this colony would upon the 
whole, appear to justify the glowing enthusiasm of 
those who have ventured to call it the Montpellier of 
the world. So much is this the case, that invalids 
are now conveyed from India to New South Wales, 
instead of being subjected to a tedious voyage to 
Europe, or a laborious over-land journey to the 
valleys of the Himmalah. 

Although New South Wales is not subjected to 
the periodical showers of the tropics, a large quan- 
tity of rain falls thoughout the year ; hitherto the 
colony has been visited by a drought al)out every 
tv/elve years : during the seasons in which these 
happen, little or no rain falls. It is however more 
than probable that as the country becomes cleared 
and cultivated, such lamentable visitations will be 
less frequent. 

Abdominal and pulmonic complaints are the two 
prevalent diseases. The abdominal complaints are 
confined princippJly to dysentery. This disorder is 



INEW SOUTH AYALES. 



41 



raost common among the poorer, classes and new 
comers. In these it is generally intimately con- 
nected with scurvy, and in both cases it is for the 
most part greatly aggravated by the excessive use 
of spirituous liquors, to which the mass of the 
colonists are unfortunately addicted. The pulmonic 
affections are generally contracted at an early period 
by the youth of both sexes, and are occasioned by 
the great and sudden changes of temperature al- 
ready noticed. They are not, however, accom- 
panied with that violent inflammatory action which 
distinguishes them in this country, but proceed 
slowly and gradually, till from neglect they ter- 
minate in phthisis. They are said to bear a strong 
affinity to the complaint of the same nature which 
prevails at the island of Madeira ; and it is remark - 
able, that in both these colonies a change of air 
affords the only chance of restoration to the natives ; 
whereas, foreigners labouring under phthisis, upon 
their arrival in either of these places, find almost 
instantaneous relief. 

There are no infantile diseases whatever. The 
measles, hooping-cough, and small-pox, are entirely 
unknown. Some few years, indeed, before the 
settlement of the colony, the small -pox committed 
the most dreadful ravages among the aborigines. 
This exterminating scourge is said to have been 
introduced by Captain Cook and his crew ; and 
many of the contemporaries of those who fell vic- 
tims to it lived for many years after, and the deep 
furrows which remained in their countenances 
showed how narrowly they had escaped the fell 
destroyer. The recollection of this dreadful malady 
will long survive in the traditionary songs of the 
simple people. The consternation which it excited 
continues as fresh in their minds, as if it had been 
an occurrence of but yesterday, although the gene« 



42 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ration which witnessed its horrors has now entirely 
passed away. The moment one of them was 
seized with it was the signal for abandoning him 
to his fate. Brothers deserted their brothers, 
children their parents, and parents their children ; 
and in some of the caves of the coast heaps of 
decaying bones still indicate the spot, where the 
lifeless sufferers were left to expire, not so much 
perhaps from the violence of the disease, as from 
the want of sustenance. 

This fatal instance of the inveteracy of the small- 
pox, when once introduced into the colony, has not 
been without its counterpoising benefit. It in- 
duced the local government to adopt proper mea- 
sures for avoiding the propagation of a similar 
contagion among the colonists. The vaccine matter 
was introduced w^ith this view many years back ; 
but as all the children in the colony were imme- 
diately inoculated, it was again lost from the want 
of a sufficient number of subjects to afford a 
sufficient supply of fresh virus, and for many years 
afterwards, every effort that was made for its re- 
introduction proved abortive. Through the inde- 
fatigable exertions, however, of Dr. Burke of the 
Mauritius, the colonists are again in possession of 
this inestimable blessing, and there can be no doubt 
that proper precautions will be taken to prevent 
them from being again deprived of it. 

A few extracts from credible authors will prove 
to the reader that what we have here stated, 
regarding the climate and diseases, is no exag- 
geration. 

Dr. Lang, who has for many years resided in 
New South Wales, says " The colony lies between 
the latitude of the Canary Islands, which, from 
their fine climate, were called the Fortunate I-lands, 
and that of the Azores, the most mild and equable 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



43 



on the eartb, the capital, Sydney, is in the latitude 
of Madeira, the j&neness of the climate of which 
every one knows. 

^' The great extent of coast line towards the 
Pacific Ocean, and the various elevation of different 
parts of the interior, insure a considerable variety 
of climate in the colony. 

" In the high districts, snow, which is never 
seen in the lowlands of the colony, is frequent in 
winter, though it seldom lies long on the ground, 
and the cold during the night is often severe. 

" From the first of March to the first of Novem- 
ber, the climate of New South Wales — which 
throughout the whole year, is at least equal, if not 
superior, to that of any other country on the 
globe — is peculiarly delightful. The sky is seldom 
clouded ; and day after day for weeks together, 
the sun looks down in unveiled beauty. In or- 
dinary seasons refreshing showers are not unfre- 
qtient ; but although there are no periodical rains 
in the colony, it sometimes rains as heavily as it 
does within the tropics. Ft seldom freezes in 
Sydney, and never snows fires are requisite in 
the winter months in the mornings and evenings. 

The Australian summer extends from the first 
of November to the first of March ; during this 
period the heat is considerable, but rarely oppres- 
sive ; the thermometer seldom rising higher in 
Sydney than 75 deg. of Fahrenheit. There is 
generally a sea breeze during the day in the sum- 
mer months, commencing about ten o'clock in the 
forenoon, and dying away about four. This breeze 
which usually blows pretty Tresh, and in the imme- 
diate vicinity of the ocean, has so powerful an 

* There was snow in Sydney June 17, 1836 — the first 
that had ever been seen in that part of the colony. 



44 



AUSTRALASIA. 



influence on the temperature of the coast, that it 
is generaily some degrees hotter at Parrainatta 
during the summer months, and colder in winter 
than it is at Sydney. But although it is occa- 
sioPxally hotter in the summer than the average 
temperature, I have just mentioned, the mornings 
and evenings are uniformly delightfully cool. 

The most singular phenomenon in the me- 
teorology of ^ew South Wales is the occasional 
prevalence of hot winds from the north westward. 
These winds occur on an average about four times 
every summer, and blow from four to thirty-six 
hours each time, the thermometer generally stand- 
ing at from 90 to 100 deg. of Fahrenheit. 

"One Sunday, in the month of February 1824, 
I had to perform divine service twice during the 
hottest part of the day ; but I confess I experienced 
very little inconvenience from the heat — less indeed 
than I have felt in a crowded church in Scotland. 
This is to be ascribed to the extreme dryness of 
the atmosphere.'' 

A young gentleman, bred to the legal profession, 
w^rites a series of letters to his friends at home, 
wdiich were published under the title of " Three 
Years of a Settlers Life,'' thus speaks of the 
climate at two different times. 

The climate is very agreeable#^rather w^arm in 
the heat of the day ; but there is something in it 
that does not affect one as at home. I walked 
two miles one day to church, and back, then rode 
to the other farm to dinner when the thermometer 
stood 144 in the sun, and 95 in the shade ; yet I 
am sure I have felt more inconvenience at home. 
The evenings are always comfortable ; and except 
at Sydney one night, I never saw a musquito. I 
am in most perfect health — quite comfortable. 

The winter here is not cold (a good deal like 



j 



KEYV^ SOUTH WALES, 



45 



your March weather at home) up here, and not 
near so cold down the country ; the only cold 
place is near the Snowy Mountains, v/bere the 
snow is perpetual, and the wind from that quarter 
brings a kind of snow storm perhaps once a winter 
to the neighbourhood ; the usual winter weather 
is a frost, which is off by ten o'clock, and then a 
fine day, except it be rain, and that is not often ; 
if it rain for two days together, oh ! the country 
will be drowned, and a second flood is expected, 
for it is a very dry country generally speaking/' 

The state of the weather and atmosphere were 
truly delicious and exhilarating. The air was 
cool, fresh and pure — quite a luxury to breathe it ; 
the atmosphere clear as crystal, the sky intensely 
blue, and the sun shining with brilliancy and 
warmth, whilst a gentle breeze tempered the fer- 
Tency of his rays — it was enjoyment to live in such 
a climate. In England we exist — here we feel we 
are alive. 

The v/eather has been beautiful — clear, cool, 
and bracing. To-night is colder than I have felt 
it for some time past, but I sit comfortably in the 
open tent. Last night I did not wear a jacket 
from the time we encamped. The mornings and 
evenings are now delightful. 

" The nights ^nd mornings are, however, sharp, 
though in the middle of the day it is very warm. 
We have had delightful weather ; nothing can ex- 
ceed the beauty of the mornings and evenings just 
now, and in the evenings especially, with the sun 
slanting through the trees and up the glades of the 
bush, the effect is most pleasing. I felt this espe- 
cially the night we arrived at Mr. Murray's, where 
I found too so many other pleasing rural objects ; 
the cattle and sheep, with their calves and lambs, 
returning to their folds, filling the air with their 



46 



AUSTRALASIA. 



voices — workmen returning from tbe fields — ponltry 
and other birds and beasts retiring to their roost, 
gave altogether an impression of peace and repose, 
which was most gratifying." — A Month in the Bmh^ 
at three separate stages of the author's journey 
south, in April and May. 

Lieutenant Breton, who made a tour of the 
colony says : — " I rode fifty miles a day in the hot 
wind, without feeling more inconvenience than in a 
hot day in England, and at night, I have slept in 
the open air, my saddle for a pillow, the breeze 
balmy, the firmament studded with innumerable 
bright stars, shining sweetly through the deep blue 
of that cloudless sky, and never yet experienced 
any ill effects from it ; indeed, in a climate like 
that of New South Wales I question if any thing 
is to be feared from night exposure." 

"The climate of New South Wales, confining 
ourselves of course to the settled portions of thai 
country, although varying considerably in different 
districts, is altogether highly agreeable and salu- 
brious, and is particularly favourable to children ; 
scarcely any of those diseases to which they are so 
subject here, and which yearly carry off so many 
thousands, being at all known there. Neither is it 
less favourable to all the other stages of human 
existence. Tn summer the heat is not more oppres- 
sive than in England, and in winter the cold is 
much less severe, snow rarely falHng but in the 
remote inland districts, which are situated at a 
great distance above the level of the sea ; and 
even there, excepting on the highest peaks of the 
hills, it lies but for a short time. In the lower 
district, where it is hotter, the air is tempered by 
a cool and delightful sea breeze, which blows 
steadily and regularly throughout the day, and is 
succeeded at night by an equally steady and grate- 



NEVf SOUTH WALES. 



47 



ful breeze from the land ; in short, altogether the 
climate of New South Wales is one of the most 
delightful and healthful on the face of the globe. 
The bright and sunny skies of Italy are here rivalle<l5 
and all the luxuries of the tropics produced, with- 
out the intolerable warmth of these sultry regions. 
We have already pointed out two or three con- 
trarieties between New South Wales and Great 
Britain ; another is to be found in the temperature 
of the different winds, that from the south being 
there the coldest, and that from the north the 
warmest. This naturally arises from its geogra- 
phical position, from its being situated about as 
near to the south pole, as we are to the north. 
The degree of cold, and accumulations of ice and 
snow, being equally great in both of these ex- 
tremities of the earth, it follows that the winds from 
the south must be there the coldest.'' — Chamhers, 

R. M. Martin Esq. in his Colonies of the British 
Empire^ says : — " The seasons of New South Wales 
are the opposite of those of England — January 
being the middle of summer, and July of winter. 
The summer extends from the first of November 
to the first of April; the spring and autumn are 
brief, but well defined ; the winter of a bracing 
coolness, with occasional frosts at Sydney, and 
snow in the interior. Tiie spring months are 
September, October, and November; the summer, 
December, January, and February; autumn, March, 
April and May ; winter, June, July, and August. 
March, April and August, are generally considered 
the rainy months. The average temperature of 
spring is 65.5., of summer 72., of autumn, 66,, 
and of winter 55. The barometrical pressure is 
about 29.94319 inches, and the average ther- 
mometer 64 F. 



48 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The climate of Sydney may be in some measure 
judged of by the following meteorological table. 











THERM. 




WEATHER. 




Barometer 
62 ft. above 
the sea. 


p 

fcJu 


o 
.1 


s 

0 

B 
1 


\ 

Q 

CD 


S 

B 
3 


Winds. 


d 

=@ 
m 


'ci 

00 


g 
q 
m 


5 


S 0 


Jan. ... 


Max. 30.300 
Min. 29.430 


68 
9 


101 
63 


91 


754 


60 




15 


4 


12 






Feb.... 


Max. 30.300 
Min. 29.680 


75 
35 


94 
48 


90 


74 


58 


lli.O. Ji. 


20 


4 


5 






March 


Max. 30.490 
Min. 29.580 


74 
10 


83 
42 


83 


n* 


60 


17 
ill. 


19 


10 


2 


... 




April 


Max. 30.458 
Min. 27.772 


77 
40 


87 
53 


83 


70 


57 


VV . 


21 


6 




3 




May ... 


Max. 30.442 
Miu. 29.602 


79 
26 


66 
35 


73 


6U 


50 


VV . 


23 


3 




5 




Jnne... 


Max. 30.350 
Min. 29.290 


78 
25 


67 
32 


62 


52 


42 


C! TV ' 
k5. VV . 


20 


1 




9 




July . . . 


Max. 30.315 
Min. 29.840 


76 
27 


59 
26 


60 


54 


48 


Q TXT 

o. VV . 


17 


3 


5 




1 


Aug.... 


Max.30.24S|78 
Min. 29.488129 


67 

ol 


66 


55 


44 


s.w. 


14 


9 


.7 




1 


Sept. 


Max. 30.380 
Min. 29.520 


79 
18 


83 
34 


D,' 




i o 

■±Z 


N.E. 






Q 
O 




9 


Oct.... 


Max. 30.200 
Min. 29.300 


80 
20 


86 
42 


82 


691 


57 


KE. 


21 


3 


5 




2 


Nov. 


Max. 30.220 
Min. 29.860 


76 

10 


84 
51 


91 


74 


57 


E.&W. 


31 








i 
1 


Dec.... 


Max. 30.110 
Min. 29.530 


72 
30 


96 
59 


87 


75 


63 


KE. 


20 




10 




1 1 


Year. . . 


Max. 30.490 
Mir. 29.290 


80 
9 


101 

26 


91 




28 




241 


48 


54 


17 


7 



" In Sydney the thermometer is rarely below 
40 ; in Parraraatta, it is frequently down to 27 in 
winter. Of course as the land rises above the 
level of the oceau, a difference of temperature is 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



49 



felt ; the winter at Batburst, where the luxury 
snow is in its season enjoyed, being much coide 
tban on the sea shore ; while the difference of 
latitude between, for instance, Sydney in 34 de- 
grees, and the parallel of Moreton Bay, in that of 
28, is considerable. 

" During the summer months, a regular sea 
breeze sets in daily, and refreshes the inhabitants 
along the coast, who besides are not so much ex- 
posed to the hot winds as those residing in the 
interior. These winds have never yet been satis- 
factorily accounted for. They blow from the north-- 
west three or four times every summer, like a 
strong current of air from a heated furnace, raising 
the thermometer to 100 degrees F. in the shade, 
and 125 when exposed to their influence. They 
seldom last more than a few days, and are cleared 
off by a thunder storm. But the rise of the 
mercury in the thermometer does not indicate the 
effect of the weather on the animal frame : the 
humidity of the atmosphere is of far more impor- 
tance in this respect, for I have felt a much greater 
degree of oppression in Calcutta with the thermo- 
meter at 80, and the atmosphere surcliarged with 
moisture, than in New South Wales, when the 
mercury was at 125 degrees, and the air of a 
parching dryness. Indeed in the latter country I 
have ridden fifty miles a day with but little 
fatigue, while under the temperature of Bengal I 
found the slightest motion exhausting. With 
respect to the origin of the hot winds, some suppose 
they ariye from vast burning forests in the interior ; 
but they are more likely to owe their extreme heat 
and siccity to passing over a great extent of arid 
and heated country, v/hich deprives them of all 
moisture." 

D 



50 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The prevailing directions of the winds at Sydney 
are thus indicated : — 









^' 


p4 


f4 






3 


rQ 






Morning . . . . 






12 






]^ 


9 


Q 
O 




29 


Q 
O 




'7 
i 


11 


izy 


h 1 


Q 


o 








ol 


Z 


JLli V ^Xi.xiJl^ • • • • 


23 




109 


5 


8 


5 


70 


13 


4 


15 


4 




m 


m 


^' 


m 

^* 






^" 


^* 
^* 




^' 




Morning .... 


8 


109 


42 


4 


118 


2 


6 


4 


1 






11 


25 


5 


2| 


10 




2 


16 


8 






Evening .... 


8 


45 


a 


11 


8 




41 


19' 


5 


2 


i 



" The salubrity of New South Wales is pro- 
verbial. Of a community of 1200 persons, only 
five or six have been known to be sick at a time ; 
and at some of the military stations, seven years 
have elapsed without the loss of a man. As an 
illustration of the climate I may here remark that, 
at Parramatta, I have, on a winter's morning, 
eaten frozen milk under an orange tree, from which 
I have gathered the ripe and ripening fruit. Old 
people arriving in the colony from Europe, have 
suddenly found themselves restored to much of the 
hilarity of youth, and I have seen several persons 
upwards of 100 years of age. One was an old 
woman living as a servant at a public- house, nea? 
Mr. Blaxland's, on the Sydney and Parramatta 
road ; she was said to be 125 years of age, and 
yet did her daily work." 

The salubrity of the seasons is evidenced by 



NEW SOUTH WALES, 



51 



tlie health of the inhabitants. They are liable to 
few diseases, and those which do occur, are repre- 
sented as in every three instances out of four, the 
result of moral causes. Excess in the use of animal 
food, and of ardent spirits, are there, as everywhere 
else, the great gateway opened by the hand of man 
for the entrance of disease and death. Temperance 
both in eating and drinking will be found by the 
emigrant the most effectual means for the preser- 
vation of health, while excessive indulgence, espe- 
cially in the latter, is more likely than even at 
home to undermine the constitution, and to blast 
the prospects with more fearful and fatal rapidity. 

" One of the Medical Boards of London trans- 
mitted a series of questions with a view to ascertain 
the average of human life in Australia, but the 
colony cannot yet furnish sufficient data for this 
purpose. There cannot yet be any native of Euro- 
pean descent more than fifty years of age ; and as 
to the adults which have arrived, whether free 
emigrants or convicts, there have been too many 
disturbing causes to enable us to arrive at any 
accurate result. There can be no doubt, that for 
any number of children born in each, the proba- 
bilities of human life are higher in the colony than 
in Great Britain ; but fewer would reach extreme 
old age in the former than in the latter. Here the 
lamp of life burns bright and strong in its own pure 
air, and is extinguished without the long feeble 
flickering which characterises the protracted dura- 
tion of helpless senility." — Dr. Lang. 

The reverend gentleman again says, The salu- 
brity of the climate of New South Wales is indi- 
cated by the general health of the colonists ; the 
diseases which actually occur being, in at least 
three cases out of every four, the result of excess 
and dissipation, rather than of those natural ills 



52 



AtrSTRALASTA. 



that flesh is heir to in every country under the sun. 
Excess in the use of animal and other stimulating 
food, is a frequent source of disease in the colony ; 
it is the path pursued unwittingly by many an 
individual who slowly and unconsciously under- 
mines his own constitution, and at length lays him- 
self open to the fatal attacks of acute disease. For 
my own part, I am inclined to believe that the 
probabilities of life, for any nnmber of children 
born in the colony, are higher than for a similar 
Dumber born in England. 

" Persons of temperate habits, who have passed 
the meridian of life before their arrival, are doubt- 
less likely to live longer in the colony than they 
would have done in England. Individual cases are 
certainly no rule to judge by ; but I may be per- 
mitted to mention the singular case of an old man 
of the name of Yrright, who had been several 
years in the colony, and who died, some time ago, 
in the Benevolent Asylum in Sydney, at 105 years 
of age.'' 

Mr. Cunningham, author of " Two Years in 
New South Waks," says — 

" The feelings from heat here are much the same 
as in England, when the thermometer stands 
twenty or thirty degrees lower, and the cold is felt 
in the same ratio ; this is in consequence of the 
dry state of the air, &c. The average of the ther- 
mometer in summer is seventy, and in winter 
forty-eight degrees." 

We have here a climate of surpassing salubrity: 
a clear, dry atmosphere as yet unknown to have 
been tainted with the breath of pestilence. In the 
height of summer we have our hot winds, but these 
are of short duration, seldom above two days at a 
time, and oftener under six hours, and are sure 
harbingers of a succeeding squall, which envelopes, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



53 



for the moment, the town and all its concerns in a 
volume of impalpable sand, but which scours the 
atmosphere of every thing noxious, and restores 
afresh the predominating serenity." — Carmichael, 

The plain of Bathurst is upwards of 2100 feet 
above the level oi the sea, an elevation which 
compensates for ten degrees of latitude, the vege- 
tation of Bathurst being exactly similar to that of 
Yan Dieman's Land, ten degrees farther to the 
south. This elevation is remarkably conducive to 
the general health of the district, Bathurst being 
unquestionably the Montpeiier of New South 
Wales." — Martin, 

We are informed that no more than two persons 
died at Bathurst in twelve years ; and only two in 
four years at the penal settlement of Moreton Bay, 
considered the hottest and most unhealthy part of 
the colony. One only was in the hospital in six 
months, out of 1200 convicts and soldiers, and 
these the worst months for disease ; a state of 
health beyond comparison higher than in this 
country. These are from the official reports of 
Captain Clunie, of the 17th regiment, who further 
says — 

Jn point of climate, Moreton Bay, being further 
to the northward, must, on the whole, be warmer 
than Sydney ; and, although we have no hot winds 
here, the thermometer ranges, during the summer, 
from 80 to 100; but I have seldom felt it so 
oppressive as in India; and the nights are generally 
cool and pleasant. In winter, except at our highest 
station, ice is hardly ever seen ; the mornings and 
evenings, however, are generally very chilly, and 
for several months constant fires are agreeable. 
At this season the climate may be considered as 
delightful." 

" As a general observation, I may say of the 



54 



AlSTRALASIA. 



climate of Xew South Wales, that it is undoubtedly 
healthy ; and an important advantage is, that the 
invalid, by removing from one district to another, 
may select a climate according to the temperature 
he requires. 

" It is not less peculiar in this respect, than it is 
in its animal and vegetable productions, as situa- 
tions are here enjoyed with health and pleasure, 
which any where else would be considered inevi- 
table destruction, or hazardous to human life. And 
although the vicissitudes of the thermometer from 
heat to cold, and of the barometer from clear 
weather to foul, are frequent and sudden, they are 
not succeeded by the same baneful consequences to 
the human body as in other countries ; nor are 
these changes followed by epidemic or contagious 
diseases, which as yet cannot be said to have 
appeared." — Breton. 

The particular account we have here given of 
the climate of New South Wales as* affecting the 
health of its inhabitants, is applicable in a striking 
degree to the soil ; the one being found mutually 
to act and re-act upon the other. 

Soil. — The colony of Xew South Wales possesses 
every variety of soil ; from the sandy heath, and 
the cold hungry clay, to the fertile loam, and the 
deep vegetable mould. For the distance of five or 
six miles from the coast, the land is in general 
extremely barren, being a poor hungry sand, thickly 
studded with rocks. A few miserable, stunted 
groves, and a dwarf underwood, are the richest 
productions of the best parts of it; whilst the rest 
never gives birth to a tree at all, and is only covered 
with low flowering shrubs, whose infinite diversity, 
however, and extraordinary beauty, render this 
wild heath the most interesting part of the country 
for the botanist, and make even the less scientific 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



55 



beholder forget the nakedness and the sterility of 
the scene. 

Beyond this barren waste, which thus forms a 
girdle to the coast, the country suddenly begins to 
improve. The soil changes to a thin layer of vege- 
table mould, resting on a stratum of yellow clay, 
which is again supported by a deep bed of schistus. 
The trees of the forest are here of the most stately 
ditnensions. Full sized gums and iron barks, along 
side of which the loftiest trees in this country would 
appear as pigmies, with the buff- wood tree, or, as 
it is generally termed, the forest oak, which is of 
much humbler growth, are the usual timber. The 
forest is extremely thick, but there is little or 
no underwood. A poor sour grass, which is too 
effectually shaded from the rays of the sun to be 
possessed of any nutritive or fattening properties, 
shoots up in the intervals. This description of 
country, with a few exceptions, however, which 
deserve not to be particularly noticed, forms another 
girdle of about ten miles in breadth ; so that, gene- 
rally speaking, the colony, for about sixteen miles 
into the interior, may be said to possess a soil which 
has naturally no claim to fertility, and will require 
all the skill and industry of its owners to render it 
even tolerably productive. 

At this distance, however, the aspect of the 
country begins rapidly to improve. The forest is 
less thick, and the trees, in general, are of another 
description; the iron barks, yellow gums, and 
forest oaks disappearing, and the stringy barks, 
blue gums, and box trees generally usurping their 
place. When you advance about four miles fur- 
ther into the interior, you are at length gratified 
with the appearance of a country truly beautiful. 
An endless variety of hill and dale, clothed in the 
most luxuriant herbage, and covered with bleating 



56 



AUSTRALASIA. 



flocks and lowing herds, at length indicate that you 
are in regions fit to be inhabited by civilized man. 
The soil has no longer the stamp of barrenness. A 
rich loam, resting on a substratum of fat red clay, 
several feet in depth, is found on the tops of the 
highest hills, which in general do not yield in fer- 
tility to the valleys. The timber, strange as it may 
appear, is of inferior size, though still of the same 
nature ; viz., blue gum, box, and stringy bark. 
There is no underwood, and the number of trees 
upon an acre do not, upon an average, exceed thirty. 
They are, in fact, so thin that a person may gallop 
without difficulty in every direction. Coursing the 
kangaroo is a favourite amusement of the colonists, 
who generally pursue this animal, at full speed, on 
horse-back, and frequently manage, notwithstanding 
its sv/iftness, to be up at the death, so trifling are 
the impediments occasioned by the forest. 

The above general description, may be applied 
with tolerable accuracy, to the whole tract of 
country which lies between this space and the 
Nepean river. The plains, however, on the banks 
of this river, which are in many places of con- 
siderable extent, are of far greater fertility, being a 
rich vegetable mould, many feet in depth, ancf have, 
without doubt, been gradually formed by deposi- 
tions from it, during the periods of its inundations. 
These plains gradually enlarge themselves, until 
you arrive at the junction of the Nepean with the 
Hawkesbury, on each side of which they are com- 
monly from a mile to a mile and half in breadth. 
The banks of this latter river are of still greater 
fertility than the banks of the former, and may vie 
in this respect with the far-famed banks of the 
Nile. The same acre of land has been known to 
produce, in the course of one year, fifty bushels of 
vfheat and a hundred of maize. The settlers have 



NEW SOUTH WALES, 



57 



never any occasion for manure, since the slimy de- 
positions from tlie river effectually counteract the 
exhaustion that would otherwise be produced by 
incessant crops. The timber on the banks of these 
rivers is for the most part apple tree, which is very 
beautiful, and bears, in its foliage and shape, a 
striking resemblance to the English oak. Its v/ood, 
however, is of no value, except for firewood, and 
for the immense quantity of potash which might be 
made from it. The blue gum and stringy bark are 
also very common on these flooded lands, and of the 
best description. The banks of the Hawkesbury 
formerly produced cedar, but that has of late years 
entirely disappeared. 

The banks of the rivers, and indeed the whole 
tract of country (generally speaking,) which we 
have been describing, with the exception of the 
barren waste in the vicinity of the coast, are, to 
use the colonial term, located, that is, either 
granted away to individuals, or attached as com- 
mons to the cultivated districts. But there are 
many unappropriated tracts of land within the 
immediate precincts of Port Jackson, some of 
which are particularly adapted to the purposes of 
colonization. 

Of these, " the Cow Pastures'' rank first in point 
of proximity. This tract of land has been reserved 
for the use of the wild cattle ; although these ani- 
mals have for many years nearly disappeared, either 
from having found an outlet into the interior, 
through the surrounding mountains, or, what is a 
still more probable conjecture, from the extermi- 
nating excursions of the numerous poor settlers, 
who have farms in the neighbourhood, and who, 
considering their general poverty, it is easy to 
believe, would not suffer tlie want of animal food, 
so long as they could take their dogs and guns, and 
D 2 



58 



AUSTRALASIA. 



kill a cow or calf at their option. These wild 
cattle were the progeny of a few tame ones which 
strayed away from tiie settlement shortly after the 
period of its foundation, and were not discovered 
till about fifteen years afterwards, when they had 
multiplied to several thousands. On their dis- 
covery they immediately attracted the attention of 
bis majesty's ministers ; and orders were des- 
patched from England, prohibiting the governor 
and his successors from granting away the land on 
which the cattle had fixed themselves. This they 
soon overspread, and on the occasion of the severe 
droughts that were experienced throughout the 
colony in the years 1813, 14, and 15, great num- 
bers of them perished from the want of water and 
pasturage. Where thousands then existed, a few 
years afterwards there were scarcely hundreds to 
be met with, and these chiefly consisted of bulls. 
A cow or calf was rarely to be met with. There 
can, consequently, be very little doubt that they 
disappeared in the manner conjectured, and that 
their numbers were reduced by the depredations of 
the poorer settlers. This is one of the most fertile 
tracts of land in the colony, about thirty miles dis- 
tant from Sydney. It contains about one hundred 
thousand acres of good land, a considerable portion 
of which is well watered, and equal to any on the 
banks of the river Hawkesbury. 

The next considerable tract of land, is the dis- 
trict called tlie Five Islands, or lilawarra. It 
commences at the distance of about forty miles to 
the southward of Sydney, and extends to Shoal- 
Haven river. This tract of land lies between the 
coast and a high range of hills which terminate at 
the north side abruptly in the sea, and form its 
northern and western boundary ; the ocean is its 
eastern boundary, and Shoal-Haven river its south- 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 59 

ern. The range that surrounds tliis district on the 
north, is a branch of the Blue Mountains. Those 
parts which are situated near Shoal- Haven river 
are highly eligible for agricultural purposes ; since 
this river is navigable for about twenty miles into 
the country for vessels of seventy or eighty tons 
burthen ; a circumstance which holds out to future 
colonists the greatest facilities for the cheap and 
expeditious conveyance of their produce to market. 
The land on the banks of this river is of the same 
nature, and possesses equal fertility with those on 
the banks of the Hawkesbury. There are several 
streams in difTerent parts of this district, which 
issue from the mountains behind, and afford an 
abundant supply of pure water. In many places 
there are extensive prairies of unparalleled richness, 
entirely free from timber, and, consequently, pre- 
pared by the hand of nature for the immediate 
reception of the ploughshare. The soil is in gene- 
ral a deep fat vegetable mould. The surface of the 
country is thinly timbered, with the exception of 
the mountain which bounds it on the northward 
and southward. This is covered with a thick 
brush, but is nevertheless extremely fertile up to 
the very summit, and peculiarly adapted, both from 
its eastern aspect and mild climate, for the cultiva- 
tion of the vine. The extent of this large tract of 
country, which has never been accurately surveyed, 
is not precisely known ; but it without doubt con- 
tains several hundred thousand acres, including the 
banks of Shoal-Haven river. These produce a 
great abundance of fine cedar, and other highly 
valuable timber. 

The country to the westward of the Blue Moun- 
tains ranks most in contiguity to Sydney, and 
claims pre-eminence not so much from any superi- 
ority of soil, as from its amazing extent and great 



60 



AUSTRALASIA. 



diversity of climate. These mountains, where the 
road previous to 1819 had been made over them, 
are fifty-eight miles in breadth. The road which 
thus traversed these mountains was by no means 
difficult for waggons until they arrived at the pass 
which forms the descent into the low country. 
There it became exceedingly steep and dangerous. 
A communication of easy access, however, w^as dis- 
covered, and opened to this delightful country be- 
yond the Blue Mountains, running through lands 
of the very best description. The colonists are 
indebted for this acquisition to their resources to 
the exertioifs of Mr. Thrasby, a large land and 
stock holder, many years resident in New South 
Wales. He was on the whole occupied fifteen 
days ; his progress being retarded for several days 
from several of his party falling sick, and from the 
badness of the weather ; but by this delay he had 
a better opportunity of examining the country on 
each side of his route. In a letter to one of his 
friends, he says : — " I have no hesitation in saying 
that we have a country fit for any and every pur- 
pose ; where fine woolled sheep may be increased 
to any extent, in a climate peculiarly congenial to 
them. Ere long you will hear of a roufce being 
continued to the southward as far as Twofold Bay, 
and so on further in succession through a country 
as much superior to the Cow Pastures, as that now 
enviable district is to the land contiguous to Sydney ; 
and where our herds, our flocks, and our cultiva- 
tion may unlimitedlj increase at an inconsiderable 
distance from the great and grand essential in a 
young colony — water carriage !" For this impor- 
tant discovery, Mr. Thrasby received the thanks 
of the governor, and a grant of one thousand 
acres of land in any part of the country discovered 
by himself, that lie may choose to select. ' 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



61 



The elevation of Mount York, the highest of the 
Blue Mountains, above the level of the sea, is only 
3200 feet, and it is imagined that the general 
height of the range cannot exceed 2000 feet. For 
the first two or three miles they are tolerably well 
clothed with timber, and produce occasionally some 
middling pasture ; but beyond this they are ex- 
cessively barren, and are covered with a thick 
brush, interspersed here and there with a few 
miserable stunted gums. They bear a striking si- 
milarity, in respect both to their soil and produc- 
tions, to the barren wastes on tlie coast of Port 
Jackson. They are very rocky, but* they want 
granite, the distinguishing characteristic of primitive 
mountains. Sandstone thickly studded with quartz 
and a little freestone are the only varieties which 
they offer ; a circumstance the more singular, as 
granite is the only stone to be met with for up- 
wards of two hundred miles from the bottom of the 
mountains. 

For the whole of this distance to the westward 
of the Blue Mountains, the country abounds with 
the richest herbage, and is upon the whole tolerably 
well supplied with running water. In the imme- 
diate vicinity of them, there is a profusion of 
rivulets which discharge themselves into the 
Western River ; or as its termed by the natives th« 
Warragamba, the main branch of the Hawkes- 
b-ury. From the moment, however, that the 
streams begin to take a western course, the want 
of water becomes more perceptible, and increases 
as you proceed into the interior, particularly in a 
west and south-west direction. 

This large and fertile tract of country, is in gene- 
ral perfectly free from underwood ; and in many 
places is without any timber at all. Bathurst 
Plains, for instance, have been found by actual ad- 



62 



AUSTRALASIA. 



measurement, to contain tip wards of sixty thou- 
sand acres, upon which there is scarcely a tree. The 
whole of this western country indeed, is much more 
open and free from timber than the best districts to 
the eastward of the Blue Mountains; and is certainly 
much better adapted for all the purposes of grazing 
and rearinor cattle. The herbao^e is sweeter and 
more nutritive, and there is an unlimited range for 
stock without any danger of their committing tres- 
pass. There is besides for the first two hundred 
miles a constant succession of hill and dale, ad- 
mirably suited for the pasture of sheep. 

Sach appears to us to be the varieties of New 
South Wales ; but for the satisfaction of our readers 
we will lay before them the evidence of other writers 
on the subject. All agree that the soil is like the 
climate, excellent. 

S. Butler observes : — As far as it has yet been 
explored, a remarkable degree of uniformity is found 
to prevail in the quality of land, supporting — at least 
south of the tropic — the same peculiar vegetation, 
and the same peculiar animals. From Moreton Bay, 
near the tropic on the east, through Port Jackson, 
Port Philip, the Tamar, Nepean Bay, Port Lincoln, 
King Georges Sound, and the Swan Eiver to 
Shark's Bay, near the tropic on the west, this 
peculiarity of sameness prominently appears. The 
discovery of a part of the coast materially different 
from the rest would astonish those who are ac- 
quainted with such portions as are at present known. 
That part of the continent of America which has 
been colonised by the Anglo-Americans is dis- 
tinguished by its mighty rivers, with their tribu- 
tary streams poured from magnificent mountains, 
flowing through valleys clothed with dense and 
boundless forests — their soil enriched by vegetable 
remains, the accumulation of ages, and deriving 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



63 



every year fresh elements of fertility from the same 
source, while the climate and atmosphere corres- 
pond with these characteristic features of the 
country. Australia, on the other hand, has none of 
these peculiarities of physical conformation. It has 
no large rivers, and is comparatively thinly 
wooded. Extensive districts are entirely free 
from timber. In the forests the trees stand far 
apart, and are scantily clothed with leaves. The 
foliage is not deciduous ; and being highly aromatic 
and antiseptic, adds nothing to the fertility of the 
soil, greatly as it contributes to the purity and 
healthfulness of the atmosphere, and with these 
peculiarities we have shown the climate to be in 
strict accordance. 

" The absence of alluvial deposits from any very 
large rivers has formed a stripe of comparative 
sterility along the margin of the ocean. The soil 
of the coast does not on this account give a correct 
idea of that of the interior. Next the sea there is 
generally a belt, principally of sand, bearing only 
stunted shrubs or brushwood. Yery fiiie land 
near the sea is a rare exception to this feature of 
uniformity. Nature seems to have peculiarly in- 
tended Australia for a pastoral country; and this 
feature in its soil plainly indicates that agriculture 
and commerce on a large scale must form ulterior 
steps in its progress to civilization. The extensive 
undulating plains of the inland district cleared by 
some natural process of forest vegetation, clothed 
with nutritious grasses, stretch themselves out, 
prepared for the flocks of the shepherd. The pos- 
session of* cattle facilitates the cultivation of the 
land for more than domestic consumption, while 
the increase of inhabitants leads to the erection of 
towns, which in their turn encourage trade, and 
lead to the extension of commerce ; a process 



64 



AUSTRALASIA. 



naturally and inevitably at present going on, and 
that first commencing with the natural advantages 
of the interior will eventually not only overcome 
the barrenness, but will draw out all the resources 
of the coast. The presence of a good harbour in 
front of, and the existence of a productive people 
behind, even the most ungenial shore, w^ll speedily 
make it the site for a city of industry, and 
its suburbs the seat, not only for producing the 
necessaries of agriculture, but will cause it to teem 
with the luxuries of the garden. 

''Australia either produces, or can be made 
capable of producing every grain and vegetable 
useful to man, with fruit in the highest perfection, 
and of all varieties, from the currant and gooseberry 
of colder climes, to the banana and pine apple of 
the tropics. In the immediate vicinity of Syd^jey, 
apples, pears, plums, strawberries, cherries, rasp- 
berries, mulberries, medlars, apricots, peaches, 
nectarines, figs, grapes, melons, oranges, lemons, 
citrons, loquats, olives, pomegranates — and in 
sheltered spots the guava and banana will be found 
growing intermingled, and producing fruit in the 
greatest abundance and of the richest flavour. 
Green peas are gathered as well in winter as in 
summer, and the potato produces two crops in the 
year. AYheat on good soil averages from twenty 
to thirty bushels in the acre, weighing from sixty 
to sixty-five pounds the bushel. But in the very 
worst situations and under notoriously improvident 
management on the farms of the smaller settlers — 
hitherto the chief wheat growers — forty bushels 
have been obtained. The seed time is from March 
to June, the harvest is in November and December. 
It is the same for oats and barley, but as yet these 
have been cultivated principally for fodder. Maize, 
the most luxuriant of grain crops, is sown in Oc- 



NEW SOUTH WALES, 



65 



tober and November, and ripens from Marcb to 
June, producing from twenty to forty and fifty 
bushels nett to the acre, according to the qualities 
of the soil and the carefulness of the culture. So 
that there are two seed times and two harvests 
each year at different seasons, and seldom has either 
been known to fail. The vine, the olive, and the 
mulberry thrive well. Vineyards and olive grounds 
have already been planted in various districts, and 
very palatable wine produced. Tobacco of good 
quality is grown. Silk, and dried fruits, with 
other useful and valuable articles for the produc- 
tion of which the climate is favourable, will doubt- 
less by degrees be introduced. 

^' Even to the southward, in such districts as 
Illawarra, the vegetation is very peculiar, and 
bears a stronger tropical character than in regions 
nearer the equator. This is supposed to arise from 
the shelter afforded from the westerly winds by the 
range of mountains which stretch along the coast, 
together with the nature of the soil, which bears 
strong marks of a volcanic origin/' 

Mr. M' Arthur corroborates Mr. Butler in the 
above, and further says : " But whilst nature is 
thus bountiful, nowhere is the truth of the wise 
ordination of Providence — that what is most to be 
desired must be sought by labour^ — more manifest 
than in New South Wales. 

''Amid the primeval forests of Australia, the 
stranger will be struck with wonder at the novel 
character of everything around him. He will ad- 
mire the gigantic growth of the trees, the varied 
beauty of the flowers, and the luxuriance of the 
uncropped herbage ; he may breathe enjoyment 
from the pure and genial atmosphere ; but for 
wherewithal to allay the cravings of hunger ho 
would seek in vain. There, Nature of herself 



AUSTRALASIA. 



produces absolutely nothing for the food of man ; 
but to honest and persevering labour, nowhere does 
she yield such a grateful return." 

The trees are almost all evergreens, and grow 
to a surprising height, some of them even to 200 
feet, and some of them as much as 60 feet in cir- 
cumference ; except in the mountains they never 
grow thick, the whole face of the country being 
like a gentleman's park, the wood not requiring to 
be cut down to permit of ploughing as in America 
and almost every other new colony. 

" The trees are almost all hard wood, and many 
of them cast their bark every year. Cedar is so 
plentiful that all the cluirches are lined vnih it. All 
the fruit trees of Europe have now been introduced 
and flourish, so tliat fruit is very cheap. ' — Lang. 

Hops are also grown in Australia, and have al- 
ready become an article of export ; as we are in- 
formed by some of the London newspapers which 
lately thus stated — A vessel from JMelbourne has 
arrived in the London docks, and brought several 
packets of hops, the growth and produce of 
Australia. This is the first importation of hops 
this season, and is of peculiar interest on account 
of the important district from wdiich the supply 
was produced. 

There are several rivers in New South Wales, 
none of which are, however, of much importance in 
a commercial point of view ; the principal are 
Castlereagh, Darling, Hawkesbury, Lachlan, Mac- 
quarrie, Murumbidge, Nepean, Warragamba, &c. 

The rivers and seas team with excellent fish ; 
but the eel, smelt, mullet, whiting, mackerel, sole, 
skate, cod, John Dory, &c., are those principally 
known in this country. 

The animals are the kangaroo, native dog, (a 
small species of the wolf) the wambat, bandicoot, 



KEW SOUTH WALLS. 



67 



kangaroo-rat, oppossum, flying squirrel, flying fox, 
&c. The hare, pheasant, and partridge are quite 
unknown, but there are herons, wild ducks, turkies, 
widgeon, teal, quail, pigeons, plovers, snipes, (fee, 
with emus, black swans, cockatoos, parrots, parro- 
quets, and a great many smaller birds, some of 
which are not found in any other country. In fact, 
both its animal and vegetable kingdoms are in a 
great measure peculiar to itself. 

There are many poisonous reptiles in New South 
* "Wales, but few accidents happen either to the 
aborigines, or to the colonists, from their bite ; of 
these the centipede, tarantula, scorpion, slow-worm, 
and the snake, are the most to be dreaded, par- 
ticularly the latter ; since there are at least thirty 
varieties, all of which but one are venomous in the 
highest degree. 

The aborigines of this country occupy the lowest 
place in the gradatory scale of the human species. 
They have neither houses nor clothing : they are 
entirely unacquainted with the arts of agriculture ; 
and even the arms which the several tribes have to 
protect themselves from the aggressions of their 
neighbours, and the hunting and fishing imple- 
ments with which they administer to their support, 
SLVG of the rudest contrivance and workmanship. 

Sixty years' intercourse with Europeans has not 
eflfected the sliglitest change in their habits ; and 
even those who have intermixed with the colonists 
have never been prevailed upon to practise one of 
the arts of civilised life. Disdaining all restraint, 
their happiness is still centred in ^their original 
pursuits, and they seem to consider the superior 
enjoyments to be derived from civilization (for they 
are very far from being insensible to them) a poor 
compensation for the sacrifice of any portion of 
their natural liberty. The colour of these people 



68 



AUSTRALASIA. 



is a dark chocolate ; their features bear a strong 
resemblance to the African negro ; they have the 
same flat nose, large nostrils, wide mouth, and 
thick lips ; but their hair is not woolly, except in 
Van Dieman's Land, where they have this further 
characteristic of the negro. 

These people bear no resemblance to any of the 
inhabitants of the surrounding islands, except those 
of New Guinea, which is only separated from New 
Holland by a narrow strait. One of these islands 
has therefore evidently peopled the other ; but • 
from whence the original stock was derived is one 
of those geographical problems which in all proba- 
bility will never be satisfactorily solved. 

The admiration of Mrs. M., a lady who visited 
this country, for a specimen of the " red man," a 
native chief whom she saw in Sydney shortly after 
her arrival, is unbounded ; her sketch of him iis 
happy and picturesque. " I had often heard of 
and seen what is called majestic demeanour, but 
this untutored being, with his tattooed face and 
arms, and long shaggy mantle, fairly outdid even 
my imaginings of the majestic, as he paced delibe- 
rately along, planting his foot at every step, as if 
he had an emperor's neck beneath it, and gazing 
with most royal indifference around him. There 
was the concentrated grandeur of a hundred royal 
mantles of velvet, gold, and ermine in the very 
sway of his flax- fringed cloak. I never beheld any 
thing so stately. I verily believe, had you placed 
him amid the coronation splendour of Westminster 
Abbey, he would not have been so vulgar as to 
betray surprise." From all that we heard from 
other quarters, we are inclined to believe that the 
chief was, in all this, an exception to his brethren. 

The generality of writers who at all notice the 
manners and characteristics of the aborigines, lead 



KEW SOUTH WALES, 69 

US to form the lowest possible estimate of their 
moral and intellectual character. Thej are ex- 
tremely fond of dancing ; their principal festival, 
at which this species of amusement is imnjoderately 
indulged in, being the Corohhory^ at which their 
doctors, or cudjies^ deliver them certain charms, 
which are supposed to possess the highest virtue. 
They prepare themselves elaborately for tliis im- 
portant ceremony — full dress being painted nudity. 
Several large fires are lighted, around which are 
• seated the women and children. The men paint 
themselves, according to their fancy, with red and 
white earth. They have bones, and bits of stones, 
and emus' feathers tied on their hair, and branches 
of trees tied on their ancles, which make a rushin^r 
noise w^hen they dance. I'heir appearance is very 
wild ; and in dancing, their gestures and attitudes 
are equally so. One old man stands before the 
dancers, and keeps repeating some words very fast 
in a kind of time, while he beats together two 
sticks. The women never dance ; their employ- 
ment is to keep the fire burning bright ; and some 
of them beat sticks, and declaim in concert with 
the old man. One of the aboriginal dances is called 
the Kangaroo dance ; and one man, wearing a long 
tail, drops down on his hands and his feet, pre- 
tending to graze, starting to look about, and 
mimicking the demeanour of the animal as nearly 
as possible ; the others in the characters of dogs and 
hunters, performing their part of the play in a 
circle round him, at a very short distance. 

The married life of the natives is any tiling but 
comfortable. The wives are called ''gins;" and 
getting married, witli the man, is equivalent to 
keeping a servant ; so that the bachelor who 
has no wife to drudge for him is universally deno- 
minated a poor fellow. A wife with them leads 



70 



AUSTRALASIA. 



but a very miserable existence, being a slave in 
every social sense, and not even permitted to feed 
but at her husband's pleasure, and off the offal be 
may choose to fling her, although on her devolves 
the chief care of providing for the repast. The 
natives are not over nice in their feeding, their 
usual food being kangaroos and opossums roasted, 
skin, entrails, and all. After the husband has 
gnawed at the animal till he has gorged himself, it 
is then handed over his shoulder to his wife, who 
sits behind, and afterwards to the children, the 
whole family after the repast going to sleep around 
the fire. They are fond of children who have sur- 
vived the perils of infancy ; but infanticide is never- 
theless a common crime ; and the mother of a babe, 
when asked for her infant, w411 reply, with the 
greatest possible coolness, I believe dingo patta" 
— that is, she believes the dogs have eaten it. 
They are exceedingly treacherous, and in the main 
very cowardly. 

Rude and barbarous as are the aborigines of this 
country, they have some confused notions of a 
Supreme Being, and a future state, but have an 
idea of an evil spirit, which they denominate 
" Yahor" the devil-devil,'' of whom they live in 
the greatest terror, and have conceived the most 
grotesque imaginings. 

Their fondness for European clothing is well 
known, and we have heard many amusing instances 
of its display. One Wellington boot, something 
the worse for the wear, was sometimes worn, with- 
out any other article of apparel ; sometimes a hat ; 
sometimes a shirt without sleeves ; sometimes one 
thing, sometimes another; but great were the 
pride and grandeur of him who could button his 
upper man in the remains of a dress coat, that 
alone being considered sufficient costume. 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



71 



Each tribe has its allotted territory, and woe be to 
him, if caught, wbo commits a trespass upon the 
domains of a neighbouring tribe, and this even 
when accompanying settlers on their journey. 

The laziness of the natives is wholly unconquer- 
able ; the utmost effort they ever make towards 
the formation of a residence being to raise a few 
slips of bark slantingly against a tree, under which 
they crawl during bad weather. 

Life in the Bush," the production of a lady, 
furnishes several anecdotes. She was returning to 
her husband's settlement from Melbourne, where 
she had been confined. She says — One morning 
I got into a little hut, with the roof half off; it 
was empty, and I thought I could wash and dress 
my baby better than in the dray. I had not been long 
in the hut when we were surrounded by natives, 
all anxious to see what we were about. One or 
two of the women came into the hut, and touched 
the pickaninny cooley (little boy) as they called it. 
They seemed much aujused at his different pieces 
of dress, and all the little black pickaninnies tried 
to cry like him. I seldom ever heard a black 
baby cry, and when it does so, the mother has 
little patience with it, but gives it a good blow 
with her elbow to make it quiet. The women 
carry their children at their backs in a basket or 
bag ; and when they suckle them, they generally 
put their breast under their arm, and ! liave seen 
them put it over their shoulder. The natives 
whom we met here knew me. They said they 
had seen me before, when I went up the country 
with ^pickaninny leuhra (Httle girl), though I did 
not recollect any of their faces. When a black 
woman has a second chikl before the first can run 
about and take care of itt^elf, it is said they eat the 
second one^ I have been told this several times. 



AUSTRALASIA. 



but am not certain if it is really the case, it is so 
very unnatural ; but it is well known they are 
cannibals, and I know they will not submit to any 
thing that troubles them. 

''They are very lazy, particularly the men. 
They make their leuhras go about all day to dig 
for raaranong, or find other kinds of food for them, 
whilst they amuse themselves by hanging about 
idle. In the evening they meet at their mi-mi ; 
the men eat first, and whatever they choose to 
leave, the leubras and pickaninnies may eat after- 
wards. Sometimes a very affectionate cooley may, 
now and then, while he is eating, throw a bit to 
his leubra, as we should do to a dog, for which 
kindness she is very grateful. Maranong is a root 
found in the ground ; it is white, and shaped like 
a carrot, but the taste is more like a turnip. The 
ieubras dig for it with long pointed sticks, which 
they always carry in their hands. 1 have often 
eaten maranong ; it is very good, and I have put 
it in soup, for want of better vegetables.*' 

The same lady says — We had a good many 
visits from the natives, and began not to turn them 
away so quickly as we used to do ; but we never 
allowed them to sleep at tlie station, except one 
big boy, Tom, whom we had determined to keep, 
if he would remain, thinking he might be useful in 
finding stray cattle. Tom was very lazy, but he 
was always obliged to chop wood, or do some work, 
else he got notiiing to eat, wdiich w^e found to be 
the only way to make the natives active. 

'' In some of the fresh water ponds there are 
found immense quantities of muscles, which the 
native women dive for. We often saw numbers 
of shells lying in heaps where the blacks had been 
eating. They are also fond of a large grub found 
generally in the cherry or honey-suckle tree ; they 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



can tell, by knocking the tree with a stick, if any 
grubs are in it. When they knock the tree, they 
put their ears close to listen, and they open it with 
a tomahawk at the very spot the grubs are to be 
found. It is a large white grub, with a black head. 
I know a gentleman who was tempted to taste 
them, from seeing the natives enjoy them so much, 
and he said they were very good, and often ate 
them again. Manna falls very abundantly from 
the gum trees afc certain seasons of the year. I 
think it was in March 1 gathered some. It is 
very good, and tastes like almond-biscuits. It is 
only to be procured early in the morning, as it dis- 
appears soon after sunrise. We sometimes got 
some skins of the opossum and flying squirrel, or 
tuan, from the natives. It was a good excuse for 
them to come to the station. I paid them with a 
piece of dress, and they were very fond of getting a 
red pocket-handkerchief to tie round their necks." 

Minerals. — The line of coast throughout the 
territory of ]Srew South Wales presents in 
general an aspect of bold perpendicular cliffs of 
sandstone, lying in horizontal strata. The cliffs are 
sometimes interrupted by sandy beaches, behind 
which the country is low and fiat, the high land 
retiriiig to a considerable distance. The strata of 
sandstone consists of beds, lying one upon the other 
in the most regular manner, so that their relative 
original situation has evidently never undergone 
any change. This sandstone is principally silicious ; 
sometimes, indeed, it is argillaceous, and in this 
state it is generally found over coal, in which situa- 
tion it is very soft and decomposable. 

All the divisions of Australia abound in those 
minerals which the art of man can apply to the 
purposes of civilization. Among these, coal, iron, 
lime; and granite are the principal. The most 

E 



74 



AUSTRAL A.SIA. 



valuable mineral yet worked in New South Wales 
is coal, especially in the country to the South of 
Hunter s River, which is an extensive coal field.* 
In every district, indeed, where the attempt has 
been made, similar strata have been discovered. 
Seams of coal are visible on the face of the cliffs on 
the shore, and may be traced for miles, until they 
dip down beneath the surface of the sea. The coal 
is decidedly of vegetable origin, the foliage and 
the fibre of the wood being still so distinctly visible 
that the botanist might ascertain the species to 
which they belong. In the alternating strata of the 
coal are found nodules of clay, ironstone, and trunks 
of arundineous ironstone plants. Thin beds of 
coal and iron are also met with along the banks of 
the rivers. In the vicinity of the mountains, from 
which many of them flow, these minerals also 
abound, communicating a ferruginous taste to the 
smaller streams, and indicating the exhaustless 
stores which are yet to be explored. 

Copper and other metals have also given indi- 
cation of their existence, but these will continue 
for some time to be only of secondary importance 
compared with the more useful, iron and coal, 
which, as the indispensable handmaids of steam, 
bave already lent their most effectual aid in in- 
creasing the rapid spread of physical and moral 
improvement over the south-eastern portion of the 
world. 

With a plentiful supply of iron, stone, slate, 
wood, and coal, it may easily be conceived how 
rapidly an industrious population may plant cities 
even in the bush. 

Being still comparatively ignorant of the geo- 

* The recent discoveries of the extensive Gold Fields 
will be particularly described in the appendix. 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



75 



graphy of tlie entire coast, and even of much of 
the interior of the country, we must know still 
less of the geological structure which forms the 
anatomy of the physical features of New South 
Wales. The many remarkable circumstances con- 
nected with this island have gi\en rise to numerous 
and various conjectures as to its origin. Immense 
deposits of fossils, chiefly shells, indicate that vast 
tracts, now dry land, have but recently emerged 
from beneath the ocean. It exhibits many symp- 
toms, both of a diluvian and of a volcanic origin ; 
but as this is the last subject that generally excites 
the popular curiosity respecting a new colony, and 
as the facts necessary for forming a correct judg- 
ment must devolve upon men of science, on them 
we refrain from further expatiation. 

Mountains. — The country rises gradually from 
the sea, till it terminates in the Blue Mountains, 
ninety miles from the coast ; they are in general 
about 4000 feet high (about the height of the 
highest land in this country), but some few peaks 
are 6000 feet above the level of the sea ; they run 
the whole length of the old part of the colony, and 
behind them are beautiful plains, while the country 
on the sea side is hill and valley. These moun- 
tains are one source of the delightful climate, as 
they cool the air with a balmy land breeze in the 
hot weather. They are called the Blue Mountains, 
from the azure tint given by the light falling on 
them through a fine rare atmosphere. They are 
full of metals, which, when explored, will be a 
source of great wealth to the colony. These moun- 
tains are extremely rugged and wild, and most of 
them very difficult of ascent. They consist of masses 
of hills, irregularly connected, diverging into ranges 
of various heights, without any appearance of uni- 
formity, and invariably shrouded by evergreens. 



re 



AUSTRALASIA* 



The views from these mountains over the bounc^ 
less plains on the one side, and over the land to the 
distant ocean on the other, are splendid ; there is 
a superb pass across them, called the Yictoria Pass, 
8751 feet above the sea, of which any country 
might be proud. 

New South Wales, as far as known, is divided 
into nineteen counties, viz : — 

1. Cumhei'^land \% metropolitan county. It 
is bounded by the Hawkesburg, the Nepean, and 
the Cataract rivers ; it is an undulating plain, and 
contains about 900,000 English acres. 

2. Camden County lies below Cumberland to tl^ 
southward, and, in point of soil, is greatly superior 
to the latter ; it contains altogether 2200 square 
miles, being sixty-six miles in length, and jGfty-fiv?e 
miles in breadth. It is one entire succession of 
hill and dale, possessing several large tracts of un- 
surpassed fertility ; of these the principal are the 

The Cow Pastures," elsewhere described. 
IlUsoarra^ or the Five Islands. — That fertile, 
beautiful, and romantic region is situated in Cam- 
den County; it comprises 150,000 acres, and ex- 
tends, in a north and south direction for eighteen 
miles along the coast. The communication with 
Sydney, however, is obstructed by a range of pre^ 
capices too steep for the passage of waggons. 

S. Argyle County lies to the w^estward of Carry- 
den. It contains about 1950 square miles ; 
being sixty miles long by thirty miles broad. This 
county consists of extensive ridges and swellii>g 
hills, with irregular plains between, and is watered 
by the stream^s branching from the Hawkesbury 
and Strathaven rivers, which even the heat of the 
summer does not altogether dry up. Lake Bathurst, 
which is from three to five miles in diameter, is in 
Argyle County ; also Goulbourn's Plains, consist- 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



77 



ing of 35,000 acres, without a single tree. Al- 
though this county cannot be said to be deficient 
of timber, compared with other districts, it is but 
thinly wooded ; and large tracts, called brushes, are 
ai together barren. 

4. Westmoreland County lies northward of 
Argyle ; it contains about 1592 square miles, 
being fifty- nine miles long and thirty-eight broad. 
It possesses the leading features distinguishing 
the county of Argyle, and contains a part of the 
Blue Mountains. 

5. ' Cook's County is among the Blue Mountains, 
west of Cumberland ; it is fifty-six miles in length, 
and fifty miles in breadth, and contains 1656 
square miles. The soil is hard and rocky, yel 
there are several fertile vallies, and a large exteat 
of tableland, from two to three thousand feet 
high, abounding with picturesque and romantic 
views. The vale of Clywd runs along the foot of 
Mount York, and extends six miles in a westerly 
direction. The rich soil below is irrigated by Cox's 
river, which runs easterly into the Hawkesbury, 
and by tiie Fish and Clarence Rivers, flowing west- 
ward into the M'Quarrie. 

6. Bathurst County lies farther west ; it con- 
tains 1860 square miles, its length being seventy- 
two, and its breadth seventy-eight miles. The 
soil consists principally of broken tableland, form- 
ing extensive treeless downs, such as Bathurst Plains, 
which contain 50,000 acres. Open downs of this 
description occasionally extend along the M'Quarrie 
River for 120 miles. On the summits of some of 
the knolls there are many dangerous quagmires 
and bogs, concealed by a surface of rich verdure. 
It is distant 120 miles from Sydney; and, from its 
cool salubrious climate, and rich pasturage, it may 
be considered as a most eligible situation for the 



78 



AUSTRALASIA. 



rearing of fine wooUed sheep on an extensive scale. 
It is admirably adapted to the growth of wheat, 
but the great expense of carriage to Sydney tends 
greatly to check its cultivation. The society of 
Bathurst is assuming an English aspect. 

7. Roxburgh County lies to the north of Bathurst ; 
it is fifty- three miles in length, forty- three in 
breadth, and contains 1519 square miles. It 
abounds with hilly and broken land, but numerous 
fertile spots are to be found, where the pasturage 
is exceedingly rich. 

8. Wellington County lies to the north-west of 
Bathurst, and in general partakes of the same qua- 
lities of soil ; it is seventy miles long, by fifty-one 
broad. In this county is the beautiful and fertile 
vale, called Wellington Yalley, which is peculiarly 
adapted either for grazing or agriculture. 

9. Philip County lies to the east of Wellington 
and north of Roxburgh counties ; it contains 1618 
square miles, being sixty- two miles long by thirty- 
eight in breadth. It possesses a great variety of 
soil. 

10. Bligh County is situated in the north-west 
part of the colony, and forms the present prescribed 
boundary. Little is known of the soil. It is but 
thinly populated. 

11. Brisbane County adjoins Bligh County, 
nearer the coast ; it contains about 2340 square 
miles. 

12. Hunter County is situated northward ot 
Cook's County, and contains 2056 square miles. 

13. Northumberland County is situated north of 
Cumberland, on the coast, and is increasing in im- 
portance. It is intersected with numerous creeks 
and rivers, thus affording every facility for inter- 
course. Its capital, Newcastle, with 3000 inhabi- 
tants, is situated at the mouth of the Hunter River ; 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



79 



in its immediate vicinity are coal mines, which are 
perseveringly and profitably worked. This county 
contains about 2340 square miles. 

14. Durham County lies to the north of North- 
umberland, and contains about 21 iT square miles. 

15. Gloucester County is situated on the coast, be- 
tween Northumberland and M'Quarrie ; it con- 
tains 2700 square miles. In this county is the 
Australian Agricultural Company's grant of a 
million of acres ; also the fine harbour and thriving 
town of Port Stephens. 

16. Georgiana County is situated to the west of the 
county of Westmoreland ; it is bounded on the 
north by Bathurst, and contains 1924 square miles. 

17. Kings County is situated southward of Geor- 
giana County, bounded on the west by Argyle, and 
contains 1781 square miles. 

18. Murray County is bounded on the north by 
King and Argyle Counties ; it contains 2247 square 
miles. Lake George is in this county. 

19. St, Vincent's County is on the coast south of 
Camden, and east of Argyle and Murray counties. 
It contains 2709 square miles. 

There are still large unexplored tracts of land 
spreading to the northward, as well as reaching 
far into the interior, the soil of which can only be 
matter of conjecture : the explored tracts forming 
only a small proportion of the vast surface of this 
southern continent. 

The want of navigable rivers is a formidable 
obstacle to the exploration of the interior, and is a 
circumstance which seems to indicate the existence 
of vast barren and arid tracts. Prince Kegent's 
River, the largest discovered on the north-west 
coast, is not a channel for a large body of water, 
while the Murray, on the south, appears to flow 
immense distances without any increase of its bulk. 



80 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The river IvPQiiarrie, which rises west of the Bine 
Mountains, is lost in extensive marshes, about 
147 degrees of longitude. The Lachlan and Mor- 
rumbidgee, both also rising in the colony, unit^ 
with the Murray, which falls into the sea at En- 
counter Bay, in South Australia. 

Port M'Quarrie is situated at the mouth of the 
river Hastings, 150 miles north of Sydney ; it is a 
bar harbour, not adapted for large vessels. This 
portion of the country is said to be too hot for 
wheat ; it is, however, well watered with several 
small streams. Port M'Quarrie was formerly a 
place for refractory convicts, but they have been 
removed to Moreton Bay. 

The neighbourhood of Moreton Bay, called by 
Dr. Lang Cook's Land^^ is attracting considerable 
attention. Though from its latitude it is warmer 
than Sydney, it is nearly free from the hot winds 
occasionally prevailing in other parts of New South 
Wales. The discoveries of Sir Thomas Mitchell 
also prove that, instead of the interior of the coun- 
try, to the north- west, being arid and barren, as 
was formerly supposed, the soil is of the most fer- 
tile kind, well watered, and that the scenery is 
magnificent and grand in the extreme. The fact 
of a large river running northwards, most probably 
into the Gulf of Carpentaria, which has recently 
been explored, is also of great importance, and 
will greatly facilitate steam communication with 
England, ma India. 

The climate of Cook's Land is highly salubrious ; 
the inhabitants are turning their attention to the 
cultivation of tobacco. Tropical plants and fruits 
also flourish there. Dr. Lang is now engaged in 
promoting the emigration of industrious families to 
this very fine district, which, however, for some 
time to come, w^ill only be adapted for those who 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



81 



depend entirely upon agricultural pursuits, as it is 
still too thinly inhabited to afford subsistence to 
many artizans. 

Norfolk Island contains about eleven thousand 
acres of land, generally a rich brown loam. It 
is extremely beautiful, affording a fine tropical 
scenery, and a beautiful undulating country. It 
was colonised by the Governor of New South 
Wales, in 1791, for the purpose of growing supplies 
for the colony. It is now used as a prison for the 
most depraved male convicts, who are banished 
thither from New South Wales, to work in chains 
for life. 

The harbours along the coast are numerous and 
excellent ; some of them, as Port Jackson, West- 
ern Port, Port Philip, Port Jervis, and Twofold 
Bay, are land-locked. 

The harbour of Port Jackson is perhaps exceeded 
by none in the world, except the Derwent, in point 
of size or safety ; and in this latter particular, it is 
doubtful if it has not the advantage. It is navi- 
gable for vessels of any burden for about seven 
miles above the town, that is about fifteen miles 
from the entrance. It possesses the best anchorage 
the whole way, and is perfectly sheltered from 
every wind that can blow. It is said to have 
nearly a hundred coves, and is capable of contain- 
ing all the shipping in the world. There can be 
no doubt, therefore, that Sydney, from the excel- 
lence of its situation and possessing such a harbour, 
must ultimately become a place of vast commer- 
cial importance. 

The discovery of this harbour, as related by Mr. 
Martin, is interesting : — 

" On the return of Captain Cook from his voy- 
age in the Southern hemisphere, and discovery of 
that part of the coast of New Ilolland named New 
E 2 



82 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Soutli WaleS; it was resolved to form a penal settle- 
ment at Botany Bay, with the following objects : — 
1st. To rid the mother country of the yearly in- 
creasing number of prisoners who were accumu- 
lating in the gaols. 2nd. To afford a proper plaae 
for the safe custody and punishment of the crimi- 
nals, as well as for their progressive and ultimate 
reformation : and, Srdly., To form a free colony 
out of the materials which the reformed prisoners 
would supply, in addition to families of free emi- 
grants who might settle in the country from time 
to time. Yfith these laudable objects in view, 
eleven sail of ships, consisting of a frigate (the 
Sirius), an armed tender, three store ships, and six 
transports, assembled at Portsmouth, in March 
1787, having on board 565 male and 192 female 
convicts, with a guard consisting of a major- 
commandant, three captains, twelve subalterns,^ 
twenty-four non-commissioned officers, and 168 
privates, all of the royal marines ; together with 
forty of the marines' wives, and their children. 
Captain Arthur Philip, R. N., an experienced 
officer, was appointed governor of the colony. The 
small fleet, with two years' provisions on board, 
sailed from the Mother-bank on the 13th of July, 
1787 ; touched for supplies and stock at Teneriffe, 
Rio de Janeiro, and the Cape of Good Hope ; and 
arrived at their destination (Botany Bay,) on the 
18th, 19th, and 20th of January, 1788, after a 
voyage of upwards of eight months, of which four 
weeks were spent at the Cape. Captain Philip 
soon discovered that the descriptions which had 
been sent home of Botany Bay had been too flat- 
tering ; in the first place, the bay was open to the 
full sweep of the east winds, which rolled a tre- 
mendous sea on the beach ; and, in the second 
place, the land, though delightful for hotanizingy 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



83 



was a series of swamps, and sterile sand, without 
water. Little suspecting that one of the finest 
harbours in the world was within a few miles' dis- 
tance to the northward, Captain Philip proceeded, 
with the boats and some of his officers, to examine 
what Captain Cook had termed Broken Bay, whore 
the Hawkesbury disembogues ; but while proceed- 
ing thither, he resolved to examine an inlet, which 
in Cook's chart was marked a boat harbour, but 
apparently so small as not to be worth investigat- 
ing ; Cook had, therefore, passed to the northward, 
and given the inlet the name of Port Jackson^ 
which was that of the seaman at the mast head, 
who first descried it on the look out. Captain 
Philip entered between the lofty head lands, tx) 
examine this 'boat harbour,' and his astonishment 
may be more easily conceived than described, when 
he found, not a boat creek, but, one of the safest 
havens in the world — where the whole of the 
British navy might securely ride at anchor. It is 
navigable, for vessels of any burden, for fifteen 
miles from its entrance, and indented with nume-- 
rous coves, sheltered from every wind, and with 
the finest anchorage. Thither the fleet was imme- 
diately removed ; and the British ensign, on the 
26th January, 1788, was hoisted on the shores of 
Sydney Cove, then thinly wooded, and abounding 
in kangaroos, but now, the infant capital of an 
embryo empire. The silence and solitude of the 
forest were soon broken in upon by the resounding 
stroke of the woodman's axe ; the ground was 
cleared, tents pitched, the live stock landed, stores 
deposited, and the little colony established ; the 
number of individuals amounting to 1,030, which 
within half a century has been augmented to 
100,000 souls. Great difficulties were experienced 
for several years, which nothing but the most ex- 



84 



AUSTRALASIA. 



traordinary perseverance, aided by that moral and 
physical courage which Britons possess in so emi- 
nent a degree, could have surmounted.'' 

Such was the foundation of this flourishing 
colony — ^the most valuable belonging to the British 
crown; andsorapidhas been its increase, thatin 1851, 
about sixty years after its settlement, by a mere 
handful of military and convicts, the population 
amounted to upwards of 300,000; an in crease so rapid 
that if we had not been assured of the fact, by the 
publication of the parliamentary returns, we could 
not have given it credit. There is still, hov>rever, 
a great disparity in the sexes, nearly 40,000 females 
being required to render them equal in number. 
The cessation of transportation to the colony has 
reduced the proportion of the convict inhabitants, 
who, a few years since, formed a fourth part of the 
community, to an inconsiderable fraction. 

Mr. Martin states, in a summary way, the pro- 
gress of the colony, in chronological order, as 
follows : — 

1789, one year after the establishment of the 
colony, first harvest reaped (at Parramatta) ; 
1790,j^r5^ settler (a convict) took possession of the 
land allotted to him; 1791, y^r^^ brick building 
finished; 1793, j^r^^ purchase of colonial grain 
(1200 bushels) by government ; 1794, first church 
built; 1796^ first play performed; 1800, first 
copper coin circulated; 1803, first newspaper 
printed; 1804, Fort William built; 1805, first 
vessel built ; ISIO, first census, free school, toll- 
gates, police, naming of the streets, establishment 
of Sydney races, and race bail ; 1811, first pounds; 
1818, first fair ; 1815, first steam-engine ; 1817, 
supreme court established, and first bank ; 1818, 
benevolent society formed; 1819, orphan institu- 
tion founded; 1820, fi^ret spirits distilled, and first 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 85 

colonial tobacco sold; 1821, ^r^^ Wesleyan and 
Eoman-catholic chapels built; 1822, freedom of 
tbe press granted, and first agricultural and reading 
socrieties formed; 1824, charter of justice granted, 
legislative council appointed, and first quarter- 
sessions lield ; lt^2 5^ first criminal jury impanelled, 
Jirst archdeacon ordained, first coroner appointed, 
and ^r^^ constitutional county meeting held ; 1827, 
Jirst daily newspaper established ; 1829, first cir- 
cuit court opened; 18S0^ first civil jury impa- 
nelled, and first college founded ; 1831, first 
colonial steam-boat launched ; 1832, y^r^^ savings' 
biink institiitod ; 1833, first mechanics' school of 
arts formed, and a monthly magazine established ; 
1834, land sold in Sydney at £20,000 per acre 1" 

When the colony of New South Wales was first 
^ablished, the whole executive powers were 
vested in the governor alone ; in 1 824, howeyer, 
a council was appointed to assist, and control the 
governor ; and the chief authority is now vested 
in — 1st. A governor of the territory of New South 
Wales, and a governor-in-chief of Van Dieman's 
Land ; 2nd. An executive council, consisting of the 
governor, the colonial secretary and treasurer, the 
hishop, and lieutenant-governor ; 3rd. A legislative 
council, consisting of the members of the above- 
mentioned court, with the addition of the chief- 
justice, the attorney- general, the chief officers of 
the customs, the auditor -general, and seven private 
gentlemen of the colony, who are appointed by the 
crown for life. 

In case of the death, absence, removal, or resig- 
nation of a member of the legislative council, the 
governor may appoint another to act in his stead, 
until her majesty's pleasure be known. With the 
concurrence of two- thirds of the members, the 
governor makes laws for the colony, if not contrary 




86 



AUSTRALASIA. 



to the act of parliament, or to the charter, or to 
letters patent, or to the laws of England. The 
governor has the initiative of all laws to be sub- 
mitted to discussion in the council, provided he 
gives eight clear days' notice in the public journals, 
or by public advertisement (if there be no news- 
paper), of the general objects of the act proposed 
to be brought under consideration, unless in cases 
of emergency^ when such notice may be dispensed 
with , 

Any member of the council may request the 
governor to introduce a bill for the consideration of 
the council. If the governor declines, he must lay 
his reasons in writing, together with a copy of the 
bill, before the council ; and any member, disap- 
proving of such refusal, may enter upon the minutes 
the grounds of his disapprobation. 

If a majority of the members dissent from any 
bill, and enter the grounds of their dissent on the 
minutes of council, the bill cannot become law. 
Every bill passed by the council must be trans- 
mitted, within seven days, to the supreme court to 
be enrolled, and after fourteen days from the date 
of such enrolment it comes into operation. If the 
judges represent that such bill is contrary to 
statutes or other public deeds, it is again brought 
under the consideration of the council, and if again 
passed, proceeds into operation until the pleasure 
of her majesty be known, to whom are transmitted 
the opinions of the judges, &;c. 

The governor and council have power to impose 
taxes for local purposes. 

The votes and proceedings of the legislative 
council are officially published in the newspapers. 

Lcacs and Courts. — The statute laws of England 
are in force in the colony, aided by acts of parlia- 
ment, and local enactments by the governor and 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



87 



legislative council : and an insolvent debtor's act is- 
in operation, the benefit of which may be obtained 
by a defendant a second, or even a third time, if 
he pay fifteen shillings in the pound. Any public 
officer taking advantage of the provisions of the 
insolvent act, is, by an order of the secretary of 
state, dismissed the service. The execution of the 
laws devolves upon a supreme court, presided 
over by a chief and two puisne judges, whose 
powers are as extensive as those of the courts of 
queens bench, common pleas, and exchequer in 
England. The supreme court, is a court of oyer 
and terminer and gaol delivery^ it is also a court of 
equity^ with all the power within its jurisdiction of 
the lord high chancellor of England ; and it is a 
court of admiralty^ for criminal offences, within 
certain limits ; it is empowered to grant letters of 
administration, and it is an insolvent debtor s court. 
From the supreme court an appeal lies in all 
actions, when the sum or matter at issue exceeds 
the value of £500, to the governor, or acting- 
governor, who is directed to hold a court of appeal, 
from which a final appeal lies to the queen in 
council. The supreme court is provided with an 
attorney-general and a solicitor-general. There are 
nine barristers, and thirty-three solicitors practising 
in this court. The sheriff exercises, by his depu- 
ties, the duties of his office over the whole territory. 
Circuit courts are held in different parts of the 
colony ; they are courts of record, and stand in the 
same relation to the supreme court as courts of oyer 
and terminer^ and of assize^ and nisi prius in Eng- 
land, do to the superior courts of record. 

Courts of general and quarter sessions have the 
same powers as those in England, and also may 
take cognizance, in a summary way, of all crimes, 
not punishable by death, committed by convicts 



88 



AUSTRALiiSIA. 



whose sentences have not expired, or have not been 
remitted. 

A vice admiralty court, presided over by the 
chief justice of the supreme court, takes cognizance 
of civil cases only, such as seamen's wages, &c. 
There is an archdeacon's court for clerical matters; 
but this court has no jurisdiction in testamentary 
affairs, the charter of justice having empowered 
the supreme court to grant letters of administra- 
tion, and direct the distribution of testator s effects. 
Courts of requests have been established, for sum- 
marily determining claims not exceeding £10, 
except the matter in question relates to the title of 
any lands, tenements, or hereditaments, or to the 
taking or demanding any duty payable to her 
majesty, or to any fee of office, annual rents, or 
other such matter, where rights in future would 
be bound, or to a general right or duty, or to 
award costs. The decision of the court is final 
and summary, as in England ; the commissioner 
appointed by the crown, presides in all the courts 
of requests throughout the colony. Juries sit in 
civil as well as criminal cases ; until within these 
few years, military and naval officers formed tlie 
criminal jury ; and civil causes were determined 
by a judge and two sworn assessors. Law-si>ifts are 
frequent in New South Wales, and immense for- 
tunes have been made by barristers and solicitors. 

Police. — This important branch is well managed 
in New South Wales. There are benches of 
stipendiary as well as unpaid magistrates through- 
out the colony, aided by head-constables, and a 
civil and military force at each station. A large 
part of the military force is required to guard the 
convicts ; and troops are seasoned in this colony for 
Indian service. 

There are no military posts in any part of New 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 89 

South Wales ; and there are only three military 
works viz. — Fort M'Quarrie, Dawes' Battery, 
and Fort Philip. The two former are situated on 
two points of land in tlie harbour of Port Jackson, 
forming the entrance to Sydney Cove, and wer« 
erected for the security of the shipping. The 
Battery and Fort Philip is situated on an eminence 
crowning the neck of land which is washed by the 
waters of Sydney Cove on the east, and of Darling 
harbour on the west side. This fort is still un- 
finished, although commenced as far back as 1804, 
and is only used as a telegraph station. There has 
been an ordnance establishment in New South 
Wales since 1836, the expense of which is de- 
frayed out of the military chest. 

Sydney, the capital of New South Wales and 
seat of the colonial government, is situated in 
83 degrees 55 minutes of south latitude, and 151 
degrees 25 minutes of east longitude ; nearly equi- 
distant from the extreme northern and southern 
extremities of the county of Cumberland. It is 
about seven miles distant from the heads of Port 
Jackson, and stands principally on two hilly necks 
of land and the intervening valley, which, together 
form Sydney Cove. The w^estern side of the tow^n 
extends to the water's edge, and occupies, with the 
exception of the small space reserved around 
Dawe's battery, the whole of the neck of land 
which separates Sydney Cove from Lane Cove, 
and extends a considerable distance back into the 
country besides. This part of the town, it may, 
therefore, be perceived, forms a little peninsula * 
and what is of still greater importance, the water 
is in general of sufficient depth in both coves to 
allows the approach of vessels of the largest burden 
to the very sides of the rocks. 

On the eastern neck of laud the extension of the 




90 



AUSTRALASIA. 



town has been interrupted by the Government- 
house, and the adjoining domain which occupies 
the whole of Bennilong's Point, a circumstance 
the more to be regretted, as the w^ater all along 
this point is of still greater depth than on the 
western side of the Cove, and consequently affords 
still greater facilities for the erection of warehouses 
and the various important purposes of commerce. 

The streets of Sydney are long, (some of them 
being fully a mile in length) wide, and quite 
English in their appearance ; in general the houses 
are lofty and well constructed, interspersed with 
cottages, with small neat gardens in front. In 
some quarters of the town gardens are attached to 
every house. The houses rise in successive terraces, 
giving variety to the scene, and conveying by 
their neatness and elegance the idea of a prosperous 
community. The shops are frequently laid out 
with great taste : unlike the " stores" in New York 
where every article may be bought under the 
same roof, each trade or business is conducted in 
its own distinct premises. 

Of the public buildings in Sydney, there are few 

that deserve particular notice for their architecture. 

In design and execution, the Australian College 

. . . ® 

buildings, erected by a number of free emigrant 

Scotch mechanics in the year 1832, on the plan 

generally pursued in the new town of Edinburgh, 

are, perhaps, the first in the colony. These 

mechanics have since been the means of effecting 

a very striking improvement in the architecture of 

the town ; and buildings are now erected both in 

Sydney and in various other parts of the territory, 

of a much superior character to any previously 

erected in New South Wales. The Sydney 

market buildings, consisting of a double range of 

covered sheds, in the Grecian style of architecture, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



91 



would almost bear comparison with any building 
of the kind in England. Government House is 
merely a large and rather ancient cottage, occupy- 
ing a beautiful situation on the eastern side of the 
cove; it is to be forthwith superseded by a build- 
ing more in accordance with the rapidly increasing 
wealth and. importance of the town. St. James's 
church is a plain brick building, with a tall and 
rather handsome spire. The Court House, and a 
large building intended for a charity-school, fo? 
the town of Sydney, were erected in its immediate 
neighbourhood at the recommendation of Mr. 
Commissioner Bigge, that the whole might appear 
a single pile of building, and have a more imposing 
effect. The Roman Catholic chapel is an am- 
bitious edifice, built of hewn stone in the form of 
a cross, and occupying a very conspicuous situa- 
tion when viewed from the water. The Sydney 
college is also a very fine building. The Scotch 
church is a plain substantial building of freestone, 
in the Gothic style, with a square tower or belfry. 
There is also a place of worship for the Presby- 
terians of Sydney, a neat plain building in the 
Gothic style of architecture ; and a Baptist chapel 
in the Grecian style. The Prisoners' Barracks is 
a large and substantial brick building, very credit- 
able to the architect Mr. Greenaway ; as is al^ 
the Carters' Barracks, and the General Hospital. 

It is from the daily increasing number, however, 
and the daily improving character of the various 
private buildings that have been recently erected, 
or are now erecting everywhere in tiie town of 
Sydney, that a proper idea can be formed of the 
present state and rapid progress of the Australian 
capital. Wharfs for shipping, of the most sub- 
stantial structure, warehouses of large dimensions 
and costly architecture, shops emulating those of 



92 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Bond-street in the British metropolis, dwelling- 
houses of every variety of form, public houses, 
wind- mills, steam-mills, (fcc. ; in short, buildings 
of every kind that may be supposed necessary in a 
busy sea-port town, have recently been erected, 
and are now erecting in all parts of Sydney — many 
af them of brick, and not a few of them of stone. 

House rent is excessively high in Sydney, as 
may be inferred from the fact that £20,000 has 
been paid for an acre of building land in George 
Street ; <£l 0,000, the minimum price of government 
building land, is not an uncommon price, and some 
ground is valued at £50 per foot. George Street 
consequently is the principal street, and contains 
all the fashionable emporiums, and is the chosen 
promenade, and the theatre for display, for high 
life in Sydney. Several private establishments are 
of great size ; one individual has erected auction 
rooms at the expense of £5000, and £20,000 has 
been expended by another individual on his dis- 
tillery. 

Sydney contains several churches, belonging to 
the English, Scotch, and Roman Catholic establish- 
ments, the clergymen of which are supported by 
the government. In addition to their own parochial 
duties they have to perform divine service periodi- 
cally at the gaols, hulks, hospitals, factories, 
prisoners' barracks, stockades for iron-gangs, &c., 
male and female orphan schools, and at divers places 
in the interior. Besides the established churches 
there are many dissenting chapels belonging to al- 
most every denomination, the clergymen of which 
depend upon the voluntary contributions of their 
flocks for their support. There are many educa- 
tional institutions here ; the Australian College, 
with three teachers, and Sydney College, with four 
teachers ; these two institutions are supported by 



KEW SOUTH WALES. 



93 



the parents of the students, and contain about 400 
scholars. There are also several primary arid infant 
schools which are supported by government ; three 
Homan Catholic schools are likewise supported by 
government. Independent of these laudable insti- 
tutions, there are several wholly maintained by 
voluntary contributions, the New South Wales 
Sunday School Institution, the Auxiliary Bible 
Society, Orphan School, and schools for the chil-' 
dr«n of the destitute poor, &c. 

There are no fewer than six steam fiour-mills in 
or near the town, besides a number of wind-mills 
on the heights around it. There are soap manu- 
factories ; manufactories of tallow and sperm 
candles ; foundries for casting brass and iron ; 
breweries for the manufacture of beer ; distilleries 
for the manufacture of gin ; rope manufactories ; 
tanneries, hat manufactories, ^c. ; while the roads 
of the colony are traversed in every direction by 
coaches and vehicles of all descriptions, built in 
Sydney. Besides all the mechanical arts that are 
in requisition in house building, equipment and 
repairing of vessels are successfully practised in 
Sydney, and afford a comfortable subsistence to a 
large and daily increasing number of industrious 
families. 

There is a market held twice a week in Sydney, 
in w^hich all sorts of goods and produce are ex- 
posed for sale. The market for horses, sheep, 
cattle, pigs, grain, hay and straw, is held at the 
southern extremity of the town ; the general mar- 
ket is situated nearer the harbour ; and the large 
and commodious buildings erected for the accom- 
modation of the numerous frequenters of that busy 
scene, not only form an appropriate ornament to 
the town, but afford a large annual revenue to the 
government. Grain and dairy produce, eggs and 



94 



AUSTRALASIA. 



poultry of all descriptions, potatoes^ pumpkinSy 
melons, apples, peaches, pears, apricots, oranges, 
lemons, loquats, grapes, figs, cherries, strawberries, 
gooseberries, native currants, with all the variety 
of vegetables cultivated in the mother country, are 
procurable in their respective seasons, in the Sydney 
market at reasonable prices, and of superior quality. 
The town of Sydney is plentifully supplied with 
milk from dairies in the town and neighbourhood ; 
and with fish chiefly from Botany Bay. 

There are five newspapers published in Sydney, 
besides the Government Gazette^ which is published 
weekly. The Sydney Gazette is published three 
times ; the Herald^ daily, and the Australian^ 
twice ; and the Colonist once a week. There is 
also a journal published twice a week, and dis- 
tributed gratuitously, supported entirely by adver- 
tisements. A monthly magazine has also been in 
existence since the commencement of 1836, and 
continues to prosper. Pamphlets on subjects of 
local interest are also published in Sydney from 
time to time ; and many volumes of poetry and 
prose have issued from the colonial press. 

"There are in and about Sydney," says Lieutenant 
Breton, "so many families of respectability, that 
they constitute a society extensive enough for any 
one who, not wishing to be eternally engaged in 
what is termed dissipation, is contented with a 
moderate share of it." 

We extract the following particulars from the 
Parliamentary Report, the most certain source from 
which we can obtain correct information. 

"The Government of the colony is vested in an 
ex-ecutive and a legislative council. 

" The laws and courts are the same as in this 
country, with a few trivial and necessary exceptions. 

'^The Colonial Churches are, the Church of 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



95 



England, the Church of Scotland, and the Church 
of Rome. Besides these establishments, there are 
several congregations of Dissenters. 

" Whenever a hundred adults shall attach them- 
selves to the ministrations of any pastor, duly 
recognised and sent forth by one or other of the 
colonial churches, and shall contribute a compara- 
tively small amount for the erection of a church 
and manse, the government guarantee a salary of 
£100 per annum for such pastor, and advance at 
least £300 from the public treasury to assist in 
erecting his manse ; and to stimulate the exertions 
of the pastor, his government salary is to be 
augmented to £150 or even to £200 per annum, 
as soon as he rallies around him a congregation of 
two or five hundred adults. 

" The practical operation of the new ecclesiastical 
system to which the colonists of New South Wales 
and Yan Dieman's Land are now subjected, I 
am happy to state that it promises to be attended 
with the happiest results. It has already infused 
something like life and vigour into the withered 
and shrivelled arm of colonial Episcopacy ; it has 
proved as life from the dead to the Presbyterian 
communion. By the Episcopalian laity of all 
classes, it has not only been acquiesced in as a 
matter of urgent necessity, on the score of justice 
to others, but received as a measure of real benefit 
to themselves. Local committees for the raising of 
the funds requisite for the erection and endowment 
of additional churches of that communion, in all 
parts of the colony, were formed immediately after 
the announcement of the new system. 

" There is a Temperance Society in the town of 
Sydney, with ramifications in other parts of the 
colony. 

" The number of reputable free emigrants is 



OS 



AUSTRALASIA* 



now very considerable in New South Wales, and 
^vill rapidly increase for the future, through the 
measures that are now in progress in the colony, 
for the encouragement and promotion of emigration. 

" As the Roman Catholic population of New 
•South Wales, which comprises about a fourth of 
the entire population, consists almost exclusively of 
convicts, and emancipated convicts and then? 
families, while the Episcopalian and Presbyterian 
communions comprise a very large majority of the 
free eQiigrant inhabitants, together with a large 
proportion of the convicts and freed persons; the 
greatly superior advantage wljich the friends and 
members of these communions will have, in ren- 
dering the new arrangement available for the 
planting of additional Protestant churches, and the 
settlement of additional Protestant ministers, is 
evident and unquestionable. 

" Considerable efforts have been for some time 
making to promote, in Australia, the education of 
the poor as well as the rich. For the former there 
ai'e two noble establishments, called the Male and 
Female Orplian Schools, each containing 1 25 desti- 
tute children, who are reared from infancy, educated 
and apprenticed out, and the females portioned 
when married. Of infant schools, there are fous 
at Sydney, one at Parramatta, and one at Yvindsor ; 
of primary or parochial schools, thirty three in 
different parts of the colony ; and there are two 
King's schools, one at Sydney, and the other at 
Parramatta, with clerical teachers. Private esta- 
blishments for education are numerous. The Syd- 
ney college was instituted 26th January 1830; it 
was established in shares of £50 each, .and upwards 
of £2000 has been expended in erecting the col- 
lege ; it is under the control of a president (the 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



97 



chief justice) and a committee of management, 
composed of emigrants and emancipists » 

The Australian college at Sydney, which owes 
its existence to the active philanthropy of the Hev. 
Dr. Lang, was instituted in the year 1831. It 
has a council and senate, after the Scotch form, on 
which, indeed, it is modelled. Tliere is a principal 
(Rev. J. S. Lang D.D.) minister of the Scotch 
church, Sydney ; a professor of English and English 
literature ; a professor of the Latin and Greek 
languages, and of mathematics and natural philo- 
sophy, with under masters for the elementary 
English classes — writing, arithmetic, hook- keeping, 
drawing, &c. The Australian College combines a 
series of schools for the elementary, with a gradually 
extending provision for the higher branches of 
education. Its capital is <£7000, one half to be 
contributed by the colonial government. 

" A Mechanics School of Arts was instituted on 
the 22nd of March, 1838 ; the governor is patron, 
and ti)ere is an efficient management, consisting of 
a president, and vice-president, and committee. 
There is a Female School of Industry which owes 
its origin to Mrs. General Darling, when her hus- 
band was governor of that colony. The Australian 
Subscription Lihrary was founded under the auspices 
of General Darling, and the president (the Hon. 
Alex. MXean) has in this, as in very many other 
instances, contributed to promote education and 
science. 

The other societies connected with religion, 
humanity, literature, or science, are the societies 
for Promoting Christian Knoioleclge^ an Auxiliary 
Bible Society^ V^'^es/^yan Auxiliary Missionary 
Society^ Australian Tract Society^ a Benevolent 
Society^ a Dispensary^ an Emigrant's Friend Society^ 

F 



.98 



AUSTRALASIA. 



an Hospital^ an Agricultural and Horticultural 
Society/ ^ &c. 

" The Press, although in its infancy, is making 
considerable progress, and will doubtless increasey 
as it is unshackled by stamps, advertisement taxes, 
or paper excise. Daily and Weekly Newspapers 
are extensively circulated throughout the Colonies. 

The colony is evidently at this moment in a 
state of rapid transition ; as the proportion of its 
free emigrant population is fast increasing, and 
will probably be doubled in the course of the next 
five years, through the measures that are now in 
progress for the encouragement and promotion of 
emigration to the colonial territory ; and as the 
whole aspect and character of its society will con- 
sequently be in all likelihood completely changed, 
and the influence of the emancipists as a separate 
and influential class in the community, completely 
neutralized." 

It will be seen that the greater part of this 
report is applicable to the colony generally ; and 
we are of opinion that nothing but the most wan- 
ton mismanagement can retard the rapid advance 
of this splendid and charming territory : and it is 
a question if even this could do it for long. 

The town of Sydney (as already noticed) is 
beautifully situated on Sydney Cove, one of the 
numerous and romantic inlets of Port Jackson, 
about seven miles from the entrance of the harbour. 
The headlands at the mouth of the harbour con- 
stitute one of the grandest and most interesting 
features in the natural scenery of the country. 
To a person approaching the land from the east- 
ward, the coast presents an apparently unbroken 
line of lofty, precipitous, sand-stone clifi's, along 
the base of wliich, the mountainous waves of 
the vast Pacific Ocean dash fearfully when the 



NEW SOUTH WALKS. 



99 



wind blows strongly from tlie eastward, causing 
dense volumes of spray and whitish vapour to 
ascend to the summits of the highest cliffs. The 
entrance is seen at a considerable distance at sea 
by means of the light-house ; but no opening of 
any kind is visible till you come close in with the 
land. At a small distance from the Heads, how- 
ever, an opening is at length perceived in the iron- 
bound coast ^ and the idea you unavoidably form 
of it is, that the cliffs on either side have been 
violently rent asunder by some mighty convulsion 
of nature to form a passage for vessels into some 
place of security. 

The entrance at the Heads is about a mile and 
three quarters wide, but the height of the cliffs, 
and the idea of boundlessness which the ocean 
scenery has previously impressed upon the mind, 
make it appear much narrower. On getting round 
Marble Head, a point of land stretching out from 
the southern side of the harbour, and completely 
concealing the opening from the eye of an observer 
at a few miles' distance at sea, the scene surpasses 
description. You immediately find yourself on 
the b<)som of a large lake, extending to a great 
distance in a westerly direction, with innumerable 
coves and inlets stretching inland to the right and 
left; some presenting sandy beaches and grassy 
lawns ; others lined with a barrier of gray rocks, 
cast in the most fantastic moulds, and surmounted 
in all directions with most beautiful shrubbery. 

Many of the most interesting localities on the 
shores of Port Jackson, between Sydney and the 
Heads, are in the hands of private proprietors, and 
the richly and endlessly diversified beauties of 
nature which they uniformly exhibit, are in some 
instances enhanced by the manner in which they 
appear contrasted with the tasteful habitations of 



100 



AUSTRALASIA, 



man. Several neat cottages have been erected by 
the pilots of Sydney, on a sandy beach immediately 
behind tb.e South Head. A little nearer tlie town 
is the picturesque cottage of Vaucluse ; and some- 
what nearer still is the splendid villa of Point Piper. 
On Woolloomoollo Hill, an elevated projection of 
the land, situated between Woolloomoolloo and 
Elizabeth Bays, about a mile from Sydney, on the 
same side of the harbour, most of the civil officers 
of the colony have built houses of respectable ap- 
pearan<.'e on allotments granted them for the pur- 
pose, the yiew of which from the water is highly 
interesting and enlivening ; and on the opposite 
side of the harbour, or what is called the North 
Shore, a few handsome cottages have also been 
erected, besides w^jarfs and stores, belonging to 
merchants in Sydney connected with the fisheries. 

The town of Sydney was originally confined to the 
immediate neighbourhood of the cove of the same 
name, which extends only a short distance inland in 
a southerly direction from the main harbour. At 
the entrance of the cove there are forts, on the 
extremities of the two ridges that form its eastern 
and western shores ; the one called Dawes' Battery, 
and the other Fort jM'Quarrie. At tlie head of the 
cove these ridges attain a considerable elevation, 
and on their sloping sides and toweriijg summits, 
as well as in the valley between, the town of S}- dney 
now extends nearly three miles from Dawes' Bat- 
tery to the southward, the ridges gradually sub- 
siding till the ground becomes nearly a dead level. 
The principal streets run in a northerly and 
southerly direction, parallel to that of the ridges, 
and are crossed nearly at right angles by otlier 
streets that terminate in a second and much more 
extensive cove to the westward, called Cockle Bay 
or Darling Harbour. In short, there can scarcely 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



101 



be imagined a finer situation for a large mercantile 
community. 

Previous to the year 1817 the circulating medium 
of the colony consisted principally of the private 
notes of merchants, traders, shopkeepers, publicans, 
&c., the amount being sometimes as low as six- 
pence. To remedy this state of things, and the 
numerous evils consequent thereon, The Bank of 
New South Wales was incorporated by a charter 
under the seal of the colony in 1817, with a capital 
of £20,000 sterling, divided into two hundred 
shares of XlOO each. The amount of shares sub- 
scribed was £12,600, and notes were issued by the 
bank, varying in value from half-a-crown to five 
pounds. £12,198 was the amount of business 
done in discounting bills during the first year ; 
while in 1818, they amounted to £81,672 ; in 1819 
to £107,256, demonstrating fully the advantages 
resulting from such an establishment, and the ne- 
cessity that existed for such pecuniary accomoda- 
tions. Ten per cent was a common rate of 
interest. The dividend declared by the bank for 
1818, was 12 per cent; for 1819, 21 per cent; for 
1820 and 21, 12 per cent ; for 1822, 15 per cent. 
The charter having been granted for seven years, 
it was renewed. Every shareholder is personally 
responsible for the whole of the transactions of the 
bank ; by this provision greater stability is given 
to the institution, while a more careful manage- 
ment of its proceedings is secured. 

The New South Wales Bank seldom advances 
money upon personal security, nor does it allow 
any interest upon current accounts. The nominal 
capital of the bank is £150,000. The amount of 
capital paid up is about £35,000. 

Its affairs are managed by a president and eleven 
directors, who are elected by the shareholders from 



102 



AUSTRALASIA. 



their own number. Each shareholder has a vote 
for every £50 paid. 

The success of this establisliment has been un- 
precedented. Almost from its commencement it 
has yielded a dividend of from 15 to 20 per cent ; 
a rate of interest which, con^iidering that its tran- 
sactions are restricted to discounting bills of a short 
date, must be highly satisfactory to those concerned ; 
and it is a remarkable fact that the New South 
Wales Bank has never sustained any actual losses 
through the non-payment of the paper discounted. 
The bank discounted at the rate of eight per cent 
up to 1824 ; since which period it has been raised 
to ten per cent. The colonial government makes 
and receives all payments in specie only in the 
colony. In consequence of this and the remittances 
of specie to those places with which a trade is car- 
ried on by the colonists, this bank has, more than 
once, been under the necessity of suspending the 
payment of specie on demand. It is a fact highly 
creditable to the bank, and to the colonists gener- 
ally, that owing to the severe drought which oc- 
curred during the panic in 1826, and which con- 
tinued for three years, there were bills over due to 
the bank amounting to £18.^000, while the whole 
capital at the time ^vas only about £22,000 ; the 
confidence of the public however, was so great, 
that by prudent management, not a penny of the 
overdue bills was lost, and the bank continued all 
the time to pay the usual dividend of from 15 to 
20 per cent. Such how^ever was the confidence of 
tho public in the stability of the establishment, 
that there w^as no run upon the bank on any of the 
occasions when it suspended cash payments; on 
the contrary, the colonists poured into its coffers 
all the cash they could collect, and by refraining as 
much as possible from demanding it, the bank v/as 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



soon enabled to resume its payments, and carry on 
it's usual business. 

The notes issued by this est ablisk meat amount 
to about £20,000, varying in value from £l to 
X30 ; the greater proportion beins: ^1 notes.^ — ■ 
Since 1826, when dollars and rupees were current, 
all tlie cash transactions of New South Wales has 
been done in sterling money^ British coin only 
being used. 

Tke Bank of Australia was established in 1826, 
with a capital of £220,000, divided into sliares, of 
which about £50,000 has been paid up. Like the 
Bank of New South Wales, it is a Bauk of issue 
and deposit ; its transactions being limited to cash- 
ing bills of a sliort date. It affords no facilities for 
remittances to Europe, or elsewhere. This bank 
discounts from 10 to £12,000 weekly, at 10 per 
cent,, which is the current rate of interest. It 
lias been highly prosperous, and bas, since its 
€ommencemt?nt, paid a dividend t^f from 12 to 15 
per cent. The notes, issued by this bank, amount 
to about £25,000, varying from £1 up to £50. 
One-fifth of th« nett profits is reserved for a 
sinking fund. 

The highly prosperous state of these two banks 
may be judged of, from the fact, that ten shares of 
the New Soutb Wales Bank were sold at 95 pre- 
mium ; and twenty-eight of the Bank of Australia 
at a premium of 75 to 80. 

The Coinmercial BanJdn^ Company/ of Sydney 
was established November, 1834, with a capital of 
£300,1)00, divided into 3,000 shares of £100 each. 
This bank, besides discounting bills, advances cash 
on security ; and allows an interest of 4 per cent., 
on current accounts, 

A London company, called The Bank of Aus- 
ralia was incorporated by royal charter, March, 



104 



AUSTRALASIA. 



1834. This bank, with a capital of £200,000, 
was established for the purpose of instituting banks 
of issue and deposit in New South Wales, Van 
Dieman's Land, and otlier settlements in Austra- 
lasia. The management of the company's afi'airs 
is vested in the London Board of Directors, ap- 
pointed by the proprietors ; and the banks in the 
colonies are conducted by local directors, and other 
persons duly qualified appointed by the directors 
in London. The Bank of Australia commenced 
business in the colony, December 14, 1835. 
Capital, £200,000 paid up. Interest allowed on 
current accounts at the rate of 4 per cent., per 
annum. 

The paper currency, in circulation, consists of 
the Bank of New South Wales, Bank of Australa- 
sia, Bank of Australia, and Commercial Bank. 
All these banks, except the Bank of Australasia, 
are joint-stock banks, the shares in which are 
transferable. The notes are all of sterling deno- 
mination, and are convertible into British money 
on demand. 

Australian Marine Assurance Company^ estab- 
lished January, 1831, capital £140,000, £14,000 
paid up. 

Union Assurance Company of Sydney^ established 
January, 1836, capital £250,000, in 5000 shares. 

Besides these there are a number of other Fire 
and Life Insurances, conducted similarly to those 
in all large towns. 

The situation of Sydney adapts it for the capital 
of a commercial empire. Port Jackson is, as we 
have already noticed, one of the finest harbours 
in the world ; its entrance is three quarters of a 
mile wide, after w^hicli it extends into a capacious 
basin, fifteen miles long, and in some places three 
br{)ad ; it is navigable for ships of any burthen at 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



105 



the distance of fifteen miles from its entrance, Tiz., 
seven miles above Sydney, up the Parramatta river, 
and which, for twelve miles further, can scarcely 
be considered more than an arm of the sea. Ships 
come up close to the wharves and warehouses at 
Sydney, and the cargoes are at once pullied from 
the ship's hold to the stores. The town is three 
miles in length, with two-thirds of its circuit envi- 
roned by the navigable river of Port Jackson. 

A fine lighthouse was erected on the lofty south 
head of Port Jackson, by General M'Quarrie^ 
which is called the M'Qnarrie Tower, and is consi- 
dered a master-piece of its kind. It contains a 
revolving light, and is visible ten or twelve leagues 
off. Its appearance is thus described by Captain 
Watson of the ship Foxhound : — On Monday 
morning last, at 3 a.m., saw the light bearing 
W.S.W., 38 miles distant, but so brilliant that I 
thought it could not be more than ten or twelve 
miles off. It was a certain guide ; and, at that 
distance, had all the appearance of a luminous 
star." An accurate description of the light and 
bearings of this light- house was published at the 
time of its erection, in the year 1818, by the sur- 
veyor-general of the colony, for the benefit of the 
captains of the vessels trading to Port Jackson. — • 
M'Quarrie Town and lighthouse is situated on 
the highest part of the outer south head of Port 
Jackson harbour, in 33 deg. 51 min. 40 sec. soutlj, 
and longitude 151 deg 16 min. 50 sec. east from 
Greenwich. The height of the light from the 
base is 76 feet, and from thence to the level of the 
sea 277 feet, being a total height of 353 feet. The 
inner south head bears from the lighthouse ^'. 
by w. 3-4 w., distant a mile and a quarter. Tiie 
outer north liead bears from it n. by e. two miles. 
The inner south head and outer north head lie m.e, 



106 



AUSTRALASIA. 



1-2 E., and s.w., 1-2 of each other distant 1 1-lOtli 
mile. The light can be seen from s. by e. to n. 
by E., those lines of bearing clearing the coast line 
half a point each way, and may be discovered from 
a ship's deck, on a clear niglit, eight leagues. 
The north end of the Sow and Pigs Reef bears 
from the inner south head s.w. by w. half a mile. 

''N.B. — The bearings are magnetic, and the 
distances computed in nautical miles. The varia- 
tion 9 deg. easterly." 

The approach to Port Jackson is thus described 
by a visitor : — ' - The entrance to the port is grand 
in the extreme. The high dark chffs we liad been 
coasting along all morning suddenly terminate in 
an abrupt precipice, called the South Head, on 
which stand the lighthouse and signal-station. — 
The North Head is a similar cliff, a bare bluff 
promontory of dark horizontal rocks, and between 
these grand stupendous pillars, as through a colos- 
sal gate, we entered Port Jackson. The scenery 
of this noble estuary .is much enhanced by the 
many bays and inlets by which it indents the land. 
A fresh vista every moment opened to the view, 
each as it seemed more lovely than the last ; the 
pretty shrubs growing thickly among the rocks, 
and down to the water's edge, adding infinitely to 
the effect, especially as they were really green — a 
thing I had not dared to expect; but it was spring, 
and every thing looked fresh and verdant. The 
neighbourhood of Sydney is adorned with villas, 
enriched with gardens and shrubberies, looking 
like the pretty cottages ornee^ near some fashionable 
English watering-place. With the exception of 
these, the first appearance of the capital is not 
promising. The chief part of the city is built on 
the sides, and at the head of a cove running at 
right angles with the stream in which we lay 



^EW SOUTH WALES. 



107 



(with the mam line of the harbour), which pre- 
vented the best parts from being observed ; and the 
main portion of what was visible had an air of 
' Wapping' about it by no means engaging." The 
town of Sydney is described in a lively olF-hand 
manner by this lady, who is astonished at the 
ladies abandoning a beautifnl rustic retreat in the 
vicinity, called The Domain," for the crowded 
and dusty street. No lady in Sydney (your 
grocers' and butchers' wives included) believes in 
the possibility of walking, so that the various 
machines upon wheels, of all descriptions, are very 
numerous, from the close carriage and showy 
barouche, or britschka, to the more humble four- 
wheeled chaise and useful gig. There is but little 
exercise on horseback, few ladies venturing to risk 
their complexions to the exposure of an equestrian 
costume." Among the nuisances to which she 
says the town is subjected is dust. Unless after 
a heavy rain, it is always dusty ; and, sometimes, 
when the wind is in a particular point, the whirl- 
pools of thick fine pow^der that fill every street and 
house are positive miseries." She also complains 
of the number of flies and musquitoes, " to protect 
one's self from tlie latter during the night, the 
same mode, of spreading a gauze curtain over the 
bed, is adopted, as prevails in the AY est Indies and 
in the Southern States of America." 

The views from the heights of Sydney are bold, 
varied, and beautiful. The strange irregular ap- 
pearance of the town itself, the numerous coves and 
islets, both above and below it, the towering forests 
and projecting rocks, combined with the infinite 
diversity of hill and dale on each side of the har- 
bour, form altogether a coup-d'oeil, of which it may 
safely be asserted that few towns can boast a 
parallel. 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The neighbouring scenery is still more diversified 
and romantic, particularly the different prospects 
from the hills on the South Head road, immediately 
contiguous to the town. Looking towards the 
coast you behold at one glance the greater part of 
the numerous bays and islands which lie between 
the town and the Heads, with the succession of 
barren, but bold and commanding hills that bound 
the harbour, and are abruptly terminated by the 
water. Further north the eye ranges over the long 
chain of lofty rugged cliffs that stretch away in the 
direction of the Coal river, and distinctly mark the 
bearing of the coast, until they are lost but in the 
dimness of vision. By wheeling round to the south 
may be beheld at the distance of seven or eight 
miles, that spacious, though less eligible harbour, 
called Botany Bay, from the prodigious variety of 
strange plants which Sir Joseph Banks found in its 
vicinity, when it was first discovered and surveyed 
by Captain Cook. To the southward again of this 
magnificent sheet of water, where it will be recol- 
lected it was the original intention, though after- 
w^ards judiciously abandoned, to found the capital of 
this colony, you behold the high bluff hills that 
stretch away towards the Five Islands, and likewise 
indicate the endinof of the coast in that direction. 

By suddenly turning to the westward, a vast 
forest is seen, uninterrupted except by the openings 
which have been made by the cultivator's axe, on 
the summits of some of the loftiest hills, and which 
tend to diminish those melancholy sensations its 
gloomy monotony would otherwise inspire. The 
innumerable undulations in this vast expanse of 
forest forcibly remind the beholder of the mighty 
ocean when convulsed by tempests ; save that the 
billows of the one slumber in a fixed and leaden 
stillnsss, and want that motion which constitutes 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



109 



the diversity, the beauty, and the sublimity of the 
other. Continuing the view, the eye rests on that 
commanding chain of mountains called Blue 
Mountains/' whose stately and overtopping gran- 
deur forms a most imposing boundary to the 
prospect. 

If the visitor proceed on the South Head road, 
until he arrives at the eminence called " Belle Vue," 
the scenery is still more picturesque and grand ; 
since, in addition to the striking objects already 
described, he will behold, as it v^ere at his feet, al- 
though still more than a mile distant, the vast and 
foaming Pacific Ocean. In boisterous weather, the 
surges that'break in mountains on the shore beneath 
him, form a sublime contrast to the still, placid 
waters of the harbour, which in this spot is only 
separated from the sea by a low sandy neck of land 
not more tiian half a mile in breadth ; yet is so 
completely sheltered, that no tempests can ruffle its 
tranquil surface. 

Parraniatta^ the second town in the colony, is 
situated at the head of Port Jackson harbour, at 
the distance of about eighteen miles by water, and 
fifteen by land from Sydney. The river for the 
last seven or eight miles is only navigable for small 
craft. This town is built along a small fresh 
water stream wbicb faHs into the river. It is sur- 
rounded on the south side by a ciiain of moderately 
high hills ; and as you approach it by the Sydney 
road, it breaks suddenly on the view when you 
have reached the summit of them, and produces a 
very pleasing effect. The adjacent country has 
been a good deal cleared ; and the gay mimosas 
which have sprung up in the openings, forms a very 
agreeable contrast to the gloom of the forest that 
surrounds and overtops them. It was in Parramatta 
the first harvest in New South Wales was reaped. 



110 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The town itself is far behind Sydney, both in 
size, and in respect of its buildings; but it never- 
theless contains many of a good and substantial 
constrnctioD. These, with the church, the Govern- 
ment House, the King's College, the Orphan house, 
and some gentlemen's seats which are situated on 
the surrounding eminences, give it, upon the whole, 
a very respectable appearance. There are also 
several good inns, where a traveller may meet with 
all the comfort to be found in similar places else- 
where. 

The population is principally composed of inferior 
traders, publicans, artificers, farmers and labourers, 
and may be estimated, exclusive of a company of 
soldiers alwavs stationed here, on a rough calculation 
at eight thousand. 

There are two fairs held here half yearly, in 
March and in September, chiefly for the sale of 
stock, for which every conyenience is provided at 
the expense of the government. 

The public institutions are the King's College, an 
Hospital, a Female Orphan house, several primary 
and infant schools, a Roman Catholic School, (fcc. 
There is likewise a factory in which such of the 
female convicts as misconduct themselyes, and those 
also, who upon their arrival in the colony are not 
immediately assigned as servants to families, are 
employed in manufacturing coarse cloth. There 
are upon an average upwards of one hundred 
women employed in this institution, which is placed 
under the direction of a superintendent. The 
transportation system having been amended, it is 
expected that ere long this building will be em- 
ployed for other purposes than it is at present. 

There is another institution in tliis town well 
wortliy the notice of the philanthropist. It is a 
school for the education and civilization of the 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



Ill 



a'borigines of the country. It was founded hy 
Governor M Quarrie, and eighteen native children 
were voluntarily placed in it by their parents, who 
were making equal progress in their studies with 
European children of the same age. The following 
extract, from the Sydney Gazette, will enable the 
reader to form some opinion of the beneficial con- 
sequences that are likely to result from this institu- 
tion, and how far they may realise the benevolent 
intentions which actuated its philanthropic founder. 

''On Saturday the town of Parramatta ex- 
hibited a novel and very interesting spectacle by 
the assembling of the native tribes there, pursuant 
to the governors gracious invitation. At ten in 
the morning the market place was thrown open, 
and some gentlemen who were appointed on the 
occasion took the management of the ceremonials. 
The natives having seated themselves on the ground 
in a large circle, the chiefs were placed on chairs a 
little advanced in front, and to the right of their 
respective tribes. In the centre of the circle thus 
formed, were placed large tables, groaning under 
the weight of roast beef, potatoes, bread, &c., and 
a large cask of grog lent its exhilarating aid to pro- 
mote the general festivity and good humour which 
so conspicuously slione through the sable visages of 
this delightful congress. The governor, attended by 
all the members of the native institution, and by 
several of the magistrates and gentlemen in the 
neighbourhood, proceeded at half past ten to the 
meeting, and having entered the circle, passed round 
the whole of them, inquiring after, and making 
himself acquainted with the several tribes, their 
respective leaders and residences. His excellency 
then assembled the chiefs by themselves, and con- 
firmed them in the rank of chieftains to which their 



112 



AUSTRALASIA. 



own tribes had exalted them, and conferred upon 
them badges of distinction. By the time this cere- 
mony was over, the governor's lady arrived, and the 
children belonging to, and under the care of, the 
native institution, fifteen in number, were introduced, 
preceded by their teacher ; the children appeared 
very clean, well clothed and happy. The chiefs 
were then again called together to observe the 
examination of the children as to their progress in 
learning, and the civilised habits of life. Several 
of the little ones read ; and it was grateful to the 
bosom of sensibility to trace the degree of pleasure 
which the chiefs manifested on the occasion. Some 
clapped the children on the head ; and one in par- 
ticular, turning round towards the governor with 
pecuhar emotion, exclaimed, ' Governor, that will 
make a good settler, — that's my pickaninny !* The 
examinations being finished , the children returned 
to the institution. 

The feasting then commenced, and the governor 
retired amidst the loud shouts of his sable and 
grateful congress. Three more children w^ere placed 
in the institution, making the number now in that 
establishment eighteen." 

The same paper, of a later date, says, Tuesday 
last, an anniversary school examination took place 
at Parramatta, at which the children of the Native 
Institution were introduced, their number not ex- 
ceeding twenty ; while the schools of European 
children amounted to nearly one hundred. Prizes 
were prepared for distribution among such of the 
children as should be found to excel in the-early 
rudiments of education, moral and religious, and it 
is not less strange than pleasing to remark, in 
answer to an erroneous opinion, which had long 
prevailed with many, viz., that the aborigines of 



NEW SOUTH Wales. 



113 



this country were unsusceptible of any mental im- 
provement which could quahfy them for the pur- 
poses of civilised association, that a black girl of 
fourteen years of age bore away the second prize, 
with much satisfaction to the worthy adjudgers 
and auditors." 

Three or four stage coaches and two steamboats 
ply daily between Sydney and Parraniatta ; and 
there are also two daily coaches betv/een Sydney 
and Liverpool — a rising town about twenty miles 
distant from the capital, forming a thoroughfare 
for the extensive country to the south-westward. 
One of the Parramatta coaches proceeds daily to 
Windsor, on the Hawkesbury — a distance of thirty- 
five miles further inland, and there are also convey- 
ances of a similar kind from Sydney to Bathurst, 
twice a week, and from Sydney to Yass, a distance 
of ISO miles to the south-westward. Respectable 
persons travelling to and from the more distant 
settlements in the interior, generally travel on 
horseback, or in vehicles of their own; and goods 
and produce are conveyed to and from Sydney &c., 
on large drays drawn by oxen. 

The most rising town in all Australia is Mel- 
bourne, the capital of Australia Felix, situated on 
the Yarra Yarra, eight miles above William Town, 
which is on Port Philip lake, one of the most mag- 
nificent harbours in the world. At the end of 
eighteen months from its first settlement it contained 
350 houses of fr.om two to four stories. The fol- 
lowing extract of a letter will give the reader some 
idea of this thriving town. I am quite delighted 
with this beautiful Melbourne. Enthusiastic as I 
was regarding the extraordinary advantages of this 
favoured province, I almost, upon my approaching 
it, had some misgivings that the reality would, as 



AUSTRALASIA. 



alas, is too frequently the case, involve the bitter- 
ness of disappointment ; the reality, hovrever, in 
thi^ instance, far surpassed my most sanguine ex- 
pectations, and every day's experience confirms me 
ill my favourable opinion of this Australia Felix. 
The appearance of Melbourne is positively wonder- 
ful ; a foreigner unacquainted with the enterprising, 
determined, obstacle-surmounting character of our 
countrymen, could never believe that it was the 
creation of eigliteen months' industry ! The wand 
of the mao:ician could not have effected a change 
more wondrous. If all the towns on the road from 
Sydney to Yass were put together — Liverpool, 
Campbell Town, Goulbourne, and Yass, they would 
not make so respectable a town as Melbourne now 
is. -The commercial importance of Melbourne is 
evident from the activity ot its inhabitants, and the 
number of ships and vessels that visit its port (i. e. 
Port Philip). 

" A powerful steam sbip, to trade between this and 
the neighbouring settlements, is exceedingly required, 
and would pay her owners a handsome profit, I 
have just returned from a delightful boat excursion 
on the beautiful Yarra Yarra, the scenery on the 
banks of which is most attractive .... We 
feel perfectly convinced that the country around or 
connected with Port Philip, is a finer tract than any 
of a similar extent in Australia, and better situated 
in point of locality. It is destined to become one 
of the most flourishing provinces on the continent." 
Nor has this prediction been disappointed, and 
Melbourne, witli its fine port, has become one of the 
greatest rivals to Sydney ; nor is this to be won- 
dered at when we consider the many advantages it 
enjoys ; but, to say the truth, every town in this 
important colony is in a most flourishing state ; 
which will be best proved by the great increase of 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



115 



population, which we take from parliameutary 
returns : — 

In 1788, tlie first year in which this colony was settled, the 
population was . . . 1030 

1838, the number of inhabitants was . 114,386 
1848, .... 210,474 

Showing an increase of 93 per cent during the 
last ten years. 

It has frequently been doubted, nay, even denied, 
that the physical improvement of New South 
Wales has been promoted by the transportation of 
British convicts to its shores, a system now aban- 
doned by the government. In our opinion the 
improvement has been great, while the moral viti- 
Mion has been slight — more imaginary than real. 
To the person who wishes either a profitable in- 
vestment for his capital ; or to the industrious 
artizan or labourer desirous of obtaining remuner- 
ative wages for his labour, it must be of the great- 
est importance to such, to learn how in this 
promising colony these objects are most effectually 
to be gained. For centuries yet to come the spirit 
of enterprise, it is evident, cannot be daunted, nor 
the hand of industry idle for the lack of employ- 
ment. 

For many years after the first settlement of the 
colony, the trade consisted merely in the importa- 
tion of such articles of British manufacture or 
foreign produce as were required for the internal 
consumption of the convicts, military, and free 
settlers. These articles were imported by mer- 
chants, who had taken up their abode in Sydney in 
the earlier times of the settlement, and who dis- 
posed of them to the colonial dealers, who again 
retailed them to the inhabitants : the money ex- 
pended by the British government for the support 



116 



AUSTRALASIA. 



of the convict*?, and the pay and subsistence of the 
civil and military establishments, was the only 
source to which all parties looked for their ultimate 
payment. This state of things continued until so 
late a period as the government of Sir T. Brisbane, 
1821-25 ; for, although a few seal skins, a few tons 
of oil, and a few bales of wool, had been occasion- 
ally exported previous to that period, the chief, if 
not the sole profit of the colonial merchant, was the 
expenditure of British money. The colonists have 
however at last a staple export, which is rapidly 
increasing, and promises in a short period to suffice 
for all their wants, and to render them indepen- 
dent of the sums afforded them by the expenditure 
of the government, viz., the fieeces of their flocks, 
which are found to contain all the qualities that 
constitute the excellence of the Saxon and Spanish 
wool. The sheep-holders in general have become 
sensible of the advantage of directing their atten- 
tion to the improvement of their flocks ; and if 
their exertions be properly seconded, there can 
be no doubt that the ample supply of fine wool, 
which the parent country from year to year 
receive from the colony, well repay her for the care 
and expense she bestowed on it during the pro- 
tracted period of its infancy. 

Sheep-farming, therefore, constitutes the princi- 
pal dependence of the Xew South Wales landholder; 
and the peculiar adaptation of the soil and climate 
to the growth of wool on the one hand, and the 
unlimited demand for that important article of 
colonial produce on the other, not only in Great 
Britain, but in France and America, will doubtless 
render it expedient that he should make it the first 
object of his attention. Where the country con- 
sists of open plains destitute of timber, a thousand 
sheep are entrusted to the care of one shepherd ; 



KEW SOUTH WALES. 117 

but on account of the scarcity of such servants, as 
masiy as 1500, even 2000 have been made to run 
together. The sheep are folded in a pen, con- 
structed of moveable hurdles, at night: and to pre- 
vent them from being attacked by the native dog, 
the shepherd, attended by his dogs, sleeps in a 
moveable covered berth, outside the fold. The 
lambingseason is in some instances in the commence-- 
ment of winter, but more frequently in the begin- 
ning of summer. The shearing of the sheep always 
takes places at the latter season ; a fleece generally 
weighs from two to two and a half pounds. The 
wool is packed in bales, wrapped in canvas, and 
sent off to Sydney for exportation. Some of the 
more extensive sheep-farmers send their wool direct 
to their agents in London, where it is sold accord- 
ing to its quality, at from one shilling and sixpence 
to two shillings and twopence per lb. The freight 
to London does not exceed three halfpence a 
pound. It is generally, however, either bought or 
received for consignment by the colonial merchants, 
some of whom employ porters to assort and repack 
it for the London market. The number of sheep 
in New South Wales will probably not be less than 
from twelve to fifteen millions ; and settlers de- 
riving annual incomes from £400 to £500 to as 
many thousand pounds, from this source alone, are 
now to be met with all over the colony. 

The introduction of wool, the chief staple pro- 
duct, into the colony, was owing to the late Mr. 
John M' Arthur. So long back as 171)3, that enter- 
prising gentleman became convinced that the 
grasses and climate of New South Wales were 
adapted to Merino sheep ; and about two years after 
he obtained a ram and two ewes from Captain 
Kent, who had brought them, with some other 
stock, for the supply of the settlement, from the 



118 



AUSTRALASIA, 



Cape of Good Hope, to which place some of the 
pure breed had been sent by the Dutch govern- 
ment. Mr. M' Arthur immediately began to cross 
his coarse fleeced sheep with the Merino, and in 
ten years his flock, which consisted originally of 70 
Bengal animals, was increased to 4000, although 
the wethers were slaughtered as they became fit 
for food. In 1 803, Mr. M' Arthur revisited England, 
exhibited samples of his wool to a committee of 
manufacturers, who happened to be in London at 
the time, and it was so much approved that Mr. 
M' Arthur appeared before the privy council, and 
laid before them his plans for rendering England 
independent of foreign countries for a supply of the 
best wools. The following is Mr. M'Arthur s 
statement : — 

The samples of wool brought from New South 
Wales having excited the particular attention of 
the merchants and principal English manufacturers, 
Captain Macarthur considers it his duty respectfully 
to represent tj his majesty's ministers, that he has 
found, from an experience of many years, the cli- 
mate of New South Wales peculiarly adapted to 
the increase of fine woolled sheep ; and that from 
the unlimited extent of luxnriant pastures with 
w^hich that country abounds, milhons of those 
valuable animals may be raised in a few years with 
but little other expense than the hire of a few 
shepherds. 

''The specimens of wool that Captain Macartl)ur 
has with him, have been inspected by the best 
judges of wool in this kingdom, and they are of 
opinion that it possesses a softness superior to many 
of the wools of Spain ; and that it certainly is eo.uHl, 
in every valuable property, to the very best that is 
to be obtained from thence. 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



119 



" The sheep producing this fine wool are of the 
Spanish kind, sent originally from Holland to the 
Cape of Good Hope, and taken from thence to 
Port Jackson. 

Captain Macarthur being persuaded that the 
propagation of these animals would be of the ut- 
most consequence to this country, procured in 1797, 
three rams and five ewes ; and he has since had 
the satisfaction to see them rapidly increase, their 
fleeces augment in weight, and the wool very 
visibly improve in quality. When Mr. Macarthur 
left Port Jackson, in 1801, the heaviest fleece that 
had then been shorn weighed only 3 J lbs, but he 
has received reports of 1802, from which he learas 
that the fleeces of his sheep had increased to 5 lbs, 
each ; (in the grease the average weight of the 
fleeces of fine woolled sheep in New South WaleSj 
when washed, is 2 J lbs, j and that the wool is 
finer and softer than the wool of the preceding 
year. The fleece of one of the sheep imported 
from the Cape of Good Hope , has been valued 
here at four shillings and sixpence per lb,, and a 
fleece of the same kind bred in New South Wales 
is estimated at six shillings per lb. 

" Being once in the possession of this valuable 
breed, and having ascertained that they improved 
in that climate, he became anxious to extend them 
as much as possible ; he therefore crossed all the 
mixed bred ewes of which his flocks were composed 
with Spanish rams. The lambs produced from 
this cross were much improved, but v/hen they 
were again crossed, the change far exceeded his 
most sanguine expectations. In four crosses, he is 
of opinion, no distinction will be perceptible between 
the pure and the mixed breed. As a proof of the 
extraordinary and rapid improvement of his flocks, 
Captain Macarthur has exhibited the fleece of a 



120 



AUSTRALASIA, 



coarse woolled ewe, that has been valued at nine- 
pence per lb., and the fleece of her lamb, begotten 
by a Spanish ram, which is allowed to be worth 
three shillings per lb. 

Captain Macarthur has now about 4000 sheep, 
amongst which there are no rams but of the 
Spanish breed. He calculates they will, with 
proper care, double themselves every two years 
and a half ; and that in twenty years they will be 
so increased as to produce as much fine wool as is 
now imported from Spain and other countries, at 
an annual expense of £1,800,000 sterling. To 
make the principle perfectly plain upon which 
Captain Macarthur founds his expectation, he begs 
to state that half his flock has been risen from thirty 
ewes, purchased in 1793, out of a ship from India, 
and from about 8 or 10 Spanish and Irish sheep pur- 
chased since. The other half of his flock were ob- 
tained in 1801 by purchases from an officer who 
had raised them in the same time, and from about 
the same number of ewes that Captain Macarthur 
commenced with. This statement proves that the 
sheep have hitherto multiplied more rapidly than 
it is calculated they will do in future ; but this is 
attributed to the first ewes being of a more pro- 
lific kind than the Spanish sheep are found to be ; 
for since Captain Macarthur has directed his at- 
tention to that breed, he has observed the ewes do 
not so often produce double lambs. 

" As a further confirmation of the principle of 
increase that Captain Macarthur has endeavoured to 
establish, and which he is positive time will prove 
to be correct, he would refer to the general returns 
transmitted from New South Wales. In 1796 
Csince when not 100 sheep have been imported) 
1531 were returned as the public and private stock 
of the colony. In 1801, 6757 were returned ; and 



NEW SOUTH WALES, 



121 



althougli between these periods all tlie males have 
been killed, as soon as they became fit, yet there is 
^ surplus over the calculation of 633. 

Captain Macarthur is so convinced of theprac« 
ticability of supplying this country with any quan- 
tity of fine wool it may require, that he is earnestly 
solicitous to prosecute this, as it appears to be an. 
important object, and, on his return to New South 
Wales, to devote his whole attention to accelerate 
its complete attainment. All the ri^k attendant on 
the undertaking he will cheerfully bear ; he will 
require no pecuniary aid, and all the encourage- 
ment he humbly solicits is, the protection of govern- 
ment ; permission to occupy a sufficient tract of 
unoccupied lands to feed his flock, and the indul- 
gence of selecting from amongst the convicts such 
men for shepherds as may, from their previous oc- 
cupations, know something of the business. 

(Signed) John Macakthue." 

After the examination of Mr. Macarthur and 
several gentlemen before the privy council, his 
views were adopted, and with their encouragement 
Mr. Macarthur purchased from the Merino fiock of 
his majesty George III., two ewes and three rams, 
with which he returned to New South Wales in 
1806, appropriately calling the vessel, in which his 
golden fleece was embarked, the Argo." Such 
was the origin of tlie rapidly increasing flocks of 
New South Wales, whose numbers are now nearly 
three millions, and whose wool has brought 
as high as ten shillings and sixpence per lb. 
in the London market. Captain Macarthurs 
prediction has been fully verified in every particu- 
lar ; and it is to his foresight the sheep farmer is 
indebted for his prosperity. 

The reader will And some calculations of the in- 

G 



122 



AUSTRALASIA. 



crease of sheep elsewhere ; but we are induced to 
insert the following which we copy from the Sydney 
Herald.— '' We have seen, and probably printed^ 
various calculations touching the increase of sheep. 
We take, however, the facts which we have this 
day the pleasure of communicating to our readers, 
as a much more important and substantial proof of 
what can be done in our splendid country, with 
care and attention. Early in April last, Mr. 
Robert R. Leake, a young gentleman well in- 
structed in pastoral affairs, and formerly employed 
by the South Australian Coinpany, landed in the 
province 390 ewes and 10 rams. The dropping of 
lambs unfortunately commenced after landing, and 
while the ewes were suffering from the effects of 
the voyage, so that a considerable number were 
lost. The produce, however, of the fiock, on the 
1st of June, amounted to 351 lambs. On the 1st 
of January last the same ewes lambed the second 
time, and the produce was 306, making the in- 
crease of Mr. Leake's flocks as under r — -May 1st. 
original flock, ewes and rams, 400 ; June 1st. in- 
crease, lambs, 351 ; January 1st. increase, lambs, 
806; actual increase within seven months 657 ; 
total flock, 1057. The lambs of the first dropping 
in the colony will produce in August next, along 
with the imported ewes, and Mr. Leake calculates 
that his increase of lambs upon the whole flock 
during that month, will amount to 510, which 
added to the present stock of 1057, shows an in- 
crease upon the original importation of 400, of 1,197 
"within little more than sixteen n)onths 1 Truly it 
is not surprising that sheep- farming should be 
eagerly pursued." 

But tiie attention of the colonists is not entirely 
confined to sheep-farming ; the cultivation of the 
S 'jil is also attended to, though in a less degree. We 



KEW SOUTH WALES. 



123 



have already pointed out tlie fertility of the soil in 
many parts of the colony. The cost of clearing 
heavily timhered alluvial soil is about £5 an acre,* 
(the system of clearing land is the same as is 
adopted in Canada,) but a single crop of maize 
will more than cover that expense. Thinly tim- 
bered forest land is of course cleared at less cost. 
Maize is rarely planted on land of the latter descrip- 
tion, and wheat is seldom sown on alluvial land till 
after oneor two crops of maize have been produced. 
In ordinary seasons, the return of wheat, per acre, 
varies, according to the nature of the soil and 
management, from twenty to forty bushels ; but 
as much as fifty bushels an acre have been reaped 
in the county of Argyle ; and a crop at Hunter s 
river averaged one year thirty -five bushels per 
acre. In one year lately, in which there was an 
almost general failure of the crop over a great part 
of the colony, there was reaped from 150 acres of 
land 3500 bushels, or 2Si bushels per acre. Forty 
acres of that land being the bed of an old lagoon, 
yielded 17074, or 424 bushels per acre; another 
field of twenty-two acres produced 567 bushels, or 
25i per acre. However, the average of the colony 
is not higher than 224 bushels, of sixty to sixty- 
five lbs. to the bushel ; but in making this state- 
ment, we must take into consideration the wretched 
system of agriculture prevalent in many parts of 
the territory. 

The system of agriculture pursued in this colony 
does not differ very materially from that which 
prevails in England. During the earlier stages of 
these settlements, the hoe husbandry was a neces- 
sary evil ; but the great increase in the stock of 
horses and cattle has ultimately superseded the 
primitive method, and the plough husbandry is 
nowj and has been for many year? past, univer- 



124 



AUSTRALASIA. 



sally practised. In new lands, it is still un avoid* 
ably used during the first year of their cultivation 
on account of the numerous roots and other im- 
pediments to the plough, with which lands in a 
state of nature invariably abound ; but excepting 
these occasions, and the instances of settlers who 
are unable to purchase horses or oxen, and conse- 
quently adhere to the original mode of cultivation 
from necessity, the hoe husbandry is completely 
exploded. Until the year 1803, eighteen years 
after the foundation of the colony, plough hus- 
bandry was confined to a few of the richest culti- 
vators, frozn the exorbitant price of cattle. At 
that period, however, the government herds had 
so multiplied, that Governor King recommended 
the adoption of plough husbandry in general orders, 
and tendered oxen at £28 per head, to be paid 
either in produce or money at the end of three 
years, to all such settlers as were inclined to pur- 
chase them. This custom was followed by some 
of his successors ; but as they made no abatement 
from his first price, and as cattle could be obtained 
at one third of the price elsewhere, such only of 
the colonists availed themselves of the indulgence 
as had no ready means of purchase, and were al- 
lured by the length of the credit. 

Wheat, maize, barley, oats, and rye, are all 
grown in this colony ; but the two former are most 
cultivated. The climate appears to be rather too 
warm for the common species of barley and oats ; 
but the poorer soils produce them of a tolerably 
good quality. The skinless barley or Siberian 
wheat arrives at very great perfection, and is in 
every respect much superior to the common species 
of barley ; but the culture of this grain is limited to 
the demand which is created for it by the colonial 
breweries ; the Indian corn or maize, being more 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



125 



productive than barley and oats, and the season for 
planting it being two months later, than for any 
other sort of grain, the settler has every motive for 
giving it the preference. Wheat may be sown any 
time from February to July, and even as late as 
August, if the month be moist ; but the best 
months are April, May, and June. The red and 
white lammas, and the Cape or bearded wheat, are 
the species generally cultivated. June is the best 
month for sowing oats, but they may be sown till 
the middle of August. Indian corn or maize may 
be planted from the end of September to the mid- 
dle of December, but October. is the best month. 
The average produce of this grain, on rich flooded 
land, is from eighty to a hundred bushels per acre. 
On forest lands, however, the crops are not so pro- 
ductive, unless the ground be well manured ; but 
the wheat, barley, and oats grown on this land are 
much heavier and superior in quality. The differ- 
ence in weight in wheat grown on forest and flooded 
lands is, upon an average, no less than 8lbs. per 
bushel, the former sort weighing 64ibs. and the 
latter only 56lbs. 

From what w^e have already said, it must be 
evident, that the field of exertion for the agricul- 
turist in New South Wales, is sufficiently extensive. 
With every variety of climate and soil, all that the 
colony requires is only a numerous and industrious 
population, to enable it to produce in abundance all 
that is requisite for the sustenance and comfort of 
man. Enterprise, of which there is at this moment 
no lack in the colony, will in due time, discover 
a thousand channels for the profitable outlay of 
capital, and for the acquisition of wealtli. 

A country possessing so many resources, and 
occupying one of the most commanding positions 
on the globe, cannot but exercise a powerful influ- 



126 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ence on the interests and destinies of mankind. The 
convicts will, in some respects, have performed 
their proper part in the system of colonisation, by 
having cleared away many of the most formidable 
obstacles incidental to a first settlement. They 
have acted as pioneers for colonists of a better 
description ; the tide of healthy and virtuous emi- 
gration, which is now setting in, will impart a new 
principle of existence ; under its renovating influ- 
ence, fresh resources, moral as well as physical, 
will be rapidly developed, and honest persevering 
industry will meet with its reward, and be enabled 
to eat pleasant bread, and to acquire that compe- 
tency which is most conducive to the progress of 
society, and the real welfare of man. 

To a person of industry, and active habits, there 
can be little difficulty in making a choice of a situa- 
tion in this country for the exercise of his abilities. 
Whether he already possesses capital, or goes to 
New South Wales trusting to the strength of his 
own arm, and the energy of his own mind, any of 
the pastoral districts will answer his purpose. 
Those especially in the prime of life, who have a 
rising family, can scarcely commit a mistake, 
whichever of the great colonisation fields in ail 
Australia they may select, as the advantages and 
disadvantages of each will be found to counter- 
balance one another. With regard to the selection 
of a precise spot, residence in the colony, employ- 
ment in conjunction with others, and extensive 
travelling, will form the safest guides in enabling 
the intending settlers to make a selection. 

Unless for tradesmen, to form a permanent 
residence in the towns, and to expect profitable 
employment there, should form an object of desire 
to none. Lingering in them for a protracted period 
has proved the ruin and blasted the hopes of many. 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



127 



Th'ose whose inclinatioDS and habits woulcl lead 
ibem to such a course bad far better remain at 
home, as h(^re tbey will find city occupation more 
abundant, and counter- balanced by still fewer city 
temptations. If the settler arrives in Sydney with- 
out an appointment to some profitable situation in 
his pocket, and destitute of friends to whom he can 
look for advice and assistance, he will find every 
hour of his delay th-ere a destructive drain on his 
capital ; or what is infinitely worse, the irrecover- 
able loss of his time. The hospitalities of Sydney 
are great, and there are many individuals of fortune 
who keep open house for a.ny person of respectable 
connexions, and who has been well recomn tended ; 
the idlers among the taverns and grog-shops (of 
which Sydney can boast its full share,) are nume- 
rous, and many unprofitable means can be devised 
to tempt the unwary en.igrant from the path of 
industry. But whether his capital is in his pocket 
or in his hand^ this must soon come to an end ; nxi^ 
the result is in all cases equally disastrous ; if in 
search of a situation, he will find all that hold out 
the siligtest and most distant prospect of emolument 
are speedily filled up by the resident population. 
There are many who from the variety of their 
former pursuits, and the versatility of their habits, 
who have experienced so many ups and downs, 
and wfio become ready to turn their hands to any 
thing, no matter what, by which either subsistence 
or money can be obtained, that in the struggle to 
seize upon any chance of advancement, the new 
comer runs a great risk of beinor crushed in the 
crowd. There are some of the convict population 
who, from the sn.allest beginnings, and by allowing 
no opportunity of turning the penny to pass, have 
amassed great wealth ; but we would think little 
of the character of any free emigrant who should 



128 



AUSTRALASIA. 



choose to pursue this course ; indeed, to indulge the 
prospect of success in such a course would be next to 
madness. Strict honesty, and persevering industry, 
properly directed, will be fully rewarded. 

It is equally the same v/hether the settler pro- 
ceeds north to tbe Hunter, or even to M'Quarrie 
River, west to Batburst, or south to Argyle and 
Port Pbilip, he will find no want of employment; 
and tbat should be bis first object, even before 
property. Land can be purchased at any time ; 
but, even with a moderate capital, it is more 
advantageous to be employed for a while in the 
service of another, before he attempts the improve- 
ment of his own property. Nor does his capital 
require to be unemployed wdiile he is tlius, as it 
were, serving his apprenticeship ; his money can be 
safely and profitably invested in s1:ieep, which he 
can assign to the care of an active and trustworthy 
individual, of whom there are many ready to un- 
dertake the task, on the condition of receiving one- 
third of the increase, and one- third of the wool. 
After the lapse of three years, this plan will be 
found to have returned, on the most moderate cal- 
culation, not less than from 70 to 80 per cent, 
which w^ill enable him to stock land of his own 
purchase, with the additional advantage of his pre- 
vious knowledge of the localities, and the lyode of 
living in the country. This is no mere supposition, 
but the result of experience. It would be folly for 
the new proprietor to commence land-improver. 
All the money spent either in draining or damming 
water, in fencing or in building, may be sunk 
never more to be seen ; but invested in sheep, in 
the neighbourhood of unappropriated land, cannot 
fail to yield most profitable produce ; if the settler 
can take care of his own sheep, they will yield him 
a handsome return. At present there is plenty of 



KEW SOUTH WALES. 



129 



grass in the interior : sheep feed upon grass ; and, 
in this country, grass costs nothing. With care 
and attention, living a life of industry and tem- 
perance, he himself following, washing, and shear- 
ing his own sheep, (huying nothing and building 
nothing, owning neither a stone nor an acre in any 
part of the colony,) the new settler cannot but 
succeed. The sacrifice may be great, and the in- 
conveniences numerous, but with resolution and 
perseverance pursuing such a course, success, 
though slow, is certain. Sheep-farming will, for a 
long time at least, stand at the head of rural indus- 
try in New South Wales ; and by proper manage- 
ment, it can generally be reckoned to return 80 
per cent, annually. There is no calling in the 
mother country to compare to this. In the lan- 
guage of Mr. James,—" It surpasses even grog- 
selling, bullock-driving, or banking, with the 
optional clause in the notes. The only thing it 
requires is ready money to begin with, and the 
strictest attention afterwards to the sheep, with 
personal superintendence and constant dressing 
when diseased. With this, and a good look-out 
after the wild native dogs, there is a fortune to be 
made in any part of Australia by sheep-farming. 
The following statement of the increase in a large 
flock was' drawn up by a friend of the author, and 
is nothing more than the true account, casualties 
excepted ; but, as before mentioned, the casualties 
are to the careless !" 



G 2 



ISO AUSTRALASIA. 

Statement of the prohaUe Increase of a Flock oj 
2000 Ewes^ the same to he delwered May Ist^ 1849, 

1849. Females. Males. 
May 1. To Lambs in Sept. original flock 2000 

Sept 80 per cent of Lambs 800 800 

2800 800 

Deduct 24 per cent loss for tlie 

six months in casualties 70 20 

1850. 2730 780 
Sept. 80 per cent increase of Lambs 

from the original stock 800 800 

3530 1580 

Deduct 5 per cent for casual 

losses for twelve months 176 79 

Total flock in eighteen months 3354 1501 

185L 

Bept. Lambs from the original flock, 
deducting 5 per cent from 
2000 Ewes 760 760 

The Lambs dropt in Sept. 1848, 
will now have Lambs, de- 
ducting 20 per cent 256 256 

4370 2517 

Deduct 5 per cent casual losses 218 126 
Total flock in two and a half years 4152 2391 

1852. 

Sept. Lambs from the original flock, 
deducting 10 per cent from 
2000 Ewes 720 720 

Lambs from the first dropt 
Lambs, deducting 5 per cent 
from 800 304 304 

Lambs from the second dropt 
Lambs, deductijig 20 per 
■ cent from 800 256 256 

5432 3671 

Deduct 5 per cent casual losses 272 183 
Total flock in three years and a half 5160 34 SS 



>EW SOUTH WALES. 



1^1 



Thus, in tlie course of three years and a half, his 
two thousand sheep produce the enormous number 
of 8648, independent of the wool, each fleece of 
which weighs from two to two and a half pounds, 
and sells in London at from one shilling and six- 
pence to two shillings and two-pence per pound, 
deducting three halfpence for carriage there. Simi- 
lar statements have been amply corroborated • by 
many practical sheep-farmers in New South Wales. 

He continues thus for a few years, until he is 
able to purchase or rent a farm of his own ; and in 
this manner a comfortable independence is sure to 
reward the industry of a few years. 

The district of Bathurst is possessed of great 
faciiites for the adoption of this plan, being capable 
of receiving, for an almost indefinite number of 
years, an increasing population, who will, for a 
very long period, merely affect the value of the 
land, without pressing upon the means of subsist- 
ence, or the price at which they can be produced 
or purchased. 

The plain of Bathurst is traversed in the direc- 
iim of its length by the river M'Quarrie, which 
pursues a meandering course along the plains, having 
its banks ornamented with a handsome, though 
rather melancholy-looking tree, called the Swamp- 
Oak, The level plain extends to the right, almost 
as far as the eye can reach, like a large lake, with 
a belt of forest skirting its deeply indented shores, 
while numerous flocks of sheep and herds of cattle 
roam in every direction over its luxuriant pastures. 
The houses of respectable settlers, with their 
extensive farm-buildings and out-houses, their 
orchards and their cultivated land, are seen at irre - 
gular distances all over the plains ; whilst the 
numerous turf-built, thatched, and white-washed 



132 



AUSTRALASIA. 



cottages of the smaller settlers tend materially to 
enliven the scene. 

The great extent of naturally clear land of supe- 
rior quality now forms the chief attraction in this 
district ; but the difficulties of the mountain road, 
at first, could only be overcome by men possessed 
of energy and capital. The Bathurst county was 
on that account apportioned out, for the most part, 
in grants of two thousand acres each, to families of 
capital ; and the district still continues to maintain 
its respectability ; besides these wealthy families, 
however, there are many small settlers residing on 
different parts of Bathurst Plains, of whom not a 
few, by their attention and industry, have made 
themselves comfortable and independent; though 
there are also some distinguished only for their 
idleness and dissipation. A settlement of veteran 
soldiero was formed by the colonial -government, at 
a place called the Black Rock^ and from the indul- 
gences afforded them, as a reward for their past 
services, it was expected that they would have 
made themselves independent ; but this expectation 
was only realised by very few. A number of sm^H 
settlers, of a more hopeful character, were located 
in Queen Charlotte's Vale^ a valley communicating 
with the plains on the farther side of the river, and 
approaching the nearest in its original state to the 
heau ideal of natural scenery. It is traversed for 
several miles bj a small rivulet, which empties 
into the M'Quarrie river, the native grass on either 
side of which has a verdant appearance quite re- 
freshing to the eye; and trees of moderate height, 
of highly graceful foliage, are disposed at irregular 
intervals over its whole extent, so as to produce 
the most picturesque effect imaginable. 

The locality occupied by the public buildings at 
Bathurst, around which a town of considerable size 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



133 



and importance has been formed, is called the 
Settlement. In the immediate neighbourhood of 
the Settlement, the late colonial government 
granted a few small lots of land as home stations, 
to several extensive proprietors in the surrounding 
country. Had this practice been earlier intro- 
duced it would have had the happiest effects, by 
bringing all the respectable proprietors of a large 
extent of country within a moderate distance of 
€ach other, and within reach of religious instruc- 
tion, and of an education for their children superior 
to what families so much scattered can possibly 
obtain ; while their numerous fiocks could have 
ranged over the surrounding pastoral country for 
hundreds of miles, without let or hindrance. Indeed 
the peculiar adaptation of the plains of Bathurst is 
so obvious, and the adoption of that purpose would 
have proved so conducive to the welfare of the 
colony, that it is matter of surprise, that the idea 
-should not have suggested itself to the previous 
governors, by all of whom the crown lands of the 
Bathurst district were, with only a very few ex- 
ceptions, irrecoverably alienated in large tracts, 
reckless of the welfare of its future inhabitants. 

Several of the more extensive wool- growers in 
the Bathurst district keep their carriages ; the 
expense of maintaining which in New South Wales 
is trifling when compared with England. This of 
course gives the plains rather a distingue appear- 
ance. The cottages of some of the settlers (for 
such is the general style of building in the interior,) 
would do credit to some of the most fashionable 
suburbs of London. While the openness of the 
country around is rather more favourable for hunt- 
ing and shooting than most other parts of the ter- 
ritory — with the exception of Argyle and Liverpool 
Plains — it has, by the progress of emigration, re- 



134 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ceived many improvemeiits, which to an individual 

possessed of capital, present many inducements. 
The kangaroo and the emu, (a bird resembling the 
ostrich) are hunted with dogs : they are both feeble 
animals, but they are not altogether destitute of 
the means of defence : in addition to their swiftness 
of foot, which they possess in common with the 
hare and the ostrich of other countries, the emu 
has great muscular power in his long iron limbs, 
and can give an awkward blow to his pursuer, by 
striking out behind like a young horse ; while the 
kangaroo, when brought at bay with the dogs, 
rests himself on his strong muscular tail, seizes the 
dog with his fore feet, and, thrusting at him with 
one of his hind feet, which is armed for the purpose 
with a single sharp-pointed hoof, perhaps lays his 
side completely open. When hotly pursued the 
kangaroo sometimes takes to the water, where, if 
he happens to be followed by a dog, he has a sin- 
gular advantage over all other quadrupeds of his 
own size, from his ability to stand erect in pretty 
deep water. In this position he waits for the dog, 
and when the latter comes close to him, he seizes 
him with his fore feet, and presses him under the 
water till he is drowned. The bustard or native 
turkey is occasionally shot in the Bathurst coun- 
try. It sometimes weighs eighteen pounds, and 
differs from the common turkey in the flesh of the 
legs being white, whilst that of the breast is dark 
coloured. In addition to the foregoing, we are 
enabled to give the following account of the sport- 
ing at Bathurst, from a recent traveller : — 

Bream is caught in the rivers ; bites very fast, 
and is nearly as large as the salt- water fish of the 
same name. Game is plentiful : ducks, snipes, 
widgeon, teal, abounding near the rivers. I saw 
eight ducks brought down at one shot, weighing, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



135 



US I guessed, four pounds each. These are deli- 
cious eating. Sometimes the settlers will throw 
up a breast- work of boughs, near some favourite 
rendezvous of the birds, close to the water, and 
wlien they have collected near the spot, the sports- 
man fires from behind his battery, and does dread- 
ful mischief among them — forty ducks having been 
brou2[ht down in this manner from one fire. The 
plover and red- winged pigeon are very numerous, 
and easily shot ; the latter, especially, is a beautiful 
creature, and twice the size of the domestic pigeon, 
looks well and eats well at table. But the best 
sport at Bathurst is the quail — this is the par- 
tridge-shooting of New South Wales generally, but 
the Bathurst settlers seem to enjoy it in perfection, 
having a greater scope of clear open country. The 
cockatoo and magpie also abound at Bathurst, and 
are a great nuisance to the cultivated fields. In 
the forest country a variety of parrots, of the most 
beautiful plumage, fly about in every direction. 
This abundance of the feathered tribe was the 
more remarkable, as, in a late journey to Hunter's 
River, very few birds of any kind were seen. 
There is a hunt at Bathurst fur enjoying the sport 
after the kangaroo, and exterminating the wild 
dog."^ 

This locality has approached so much to what is 
supposed the highest degree of European refine- 
ment, tliat a club was lately formed, but which, 
with all the facilities afforded for enjoying the 
sports of the field, was found ill to accord with the 
industrious habits of the settlers, and the perma- 
nent improvement of the district, and the Bath- 
urst Hunt," was allowed to die a natural death. 

The Plain of Bathurst is upwards of two thou- 
sand one hundred feet above the level of the sea. 
This elevation is reajaritably conducive to tlie 



AUSTRALASIA. 



goiKjial health of the district, Bathurst being un* 
questionably the Montpelier of New South Wales. 
For persons exhibiting a tendency to phthisis pid- 
monalis medical men consider the climate of Bath- 
urst as perhaps the most favourable in the world, 
both for the mild temperature and the rarefaction 
of the air. A gentleman possessed of considerable 
property in the Bathurst district had long been a 
victim to an asthmatic affection in the mother 
country, and was so ill during his residence in 
Sydney, that he could not venture to go to bed, 
but had uniformly to spend the night leaning his 
head on his arms on a table ; on ascending the 
Blue Mountains, however, he found, to his great 
surprise and delight that the distressing affection 
had completely left him. He resided for several 
years in perfect health in the Bathurst district; but 
on occasionally coming to Sydney on business, he 
found that the complaint uniformly returned when 
he reached a certain level in descending towards 
the low country on the coast. All medical and 
scientific men agree that such a result, which was 
not influenced even by the weather, could only be 
produced by the diminished density and uniform 
salubriousoess of the atmosphere, so characteristic 
of this portion of the world. 

The direct distance from Sydney to the town of 
Wollongong, in the district of Illawarra, (or the 
Five Islands, as it is frequently called, from five 
small islands on that part of the coast) is not more 
than fifty-five miles ; and the communication be- 
tween the two places, is managed, except by 
travellers, chiefly by water ; but as the intervening 
country is intersected by numerous ravines, as well 
as b}'^ several arras of the sea, the road to Illawarra 
describes two sides of an equilateral triangle, of 
which the coast line forums the base — runs for a cer- . 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



337 



tain distance to the south-westward, and then sud- 
denly breaking off eight points to the south-east- 
ward, after heading the ravines. The distance by 
land is therefore about seventy miles, tlie road 
passing through the towns of Liverpool and 
Campbelltown. 

The town of Liverpool is situated on the banks 
of George's River, at the distance of eighteen miles 
from Sydney. It was founded during the govern- 
ment of General M'Quarrie. The river is about 
half the size of the Hav^kesbury, and is navigable 
for boats of twenty tons burthen as high up as the 
town. It empties itself into Botany Bay, about 
fourteen miles to the southward of the Heads of 
Port Jackson. The town is a flourishing place, 
but Liverpool- Road will be found very uninterest- 
ing, and is more polluted by the appearance of the 
grog-shops, than it is adorned with the cottage, or 
redeemed by the hospital founded by Sir T. Bris- 
bane, so benevolently projected, but so inauspi- 
ciously placed. 

The distance from Liverpool to Campbelltown is 
thirteen miles : and along the whole intervening 
line of road there are neat cottages, at irregular 
intervals, belonging in general to resident proprie- 
tors. In the immediate neighbourhood, the coun- 
try, which consists of a succession of hills and 
dales, has much more of an English aspect than 
most other parts of the territory, and the propor- 
tion of cleared land is very considerable. The 
district of Campbelltown is, however, unfortunately 
situated in regard to whaler , the soil of the sur- 
rounding country being strongly impregnated with 
alum, which renders the water brackish. But the 
evil is not without remedy ; and Mr. Rose, an ex- 
tensive proprietor in the neiglibcurhood, has de- 
served well of the colonists, in pointing out the 



138 



AUSTRALASIA. 



efficacy of tliat remedy, and the practicability of 
its application. In the neighbourhood of Camp- 
belltown, as well as in many other parts of the 
colony, the ground is intersected by numerous 
water-courses, which in rainy seasons contain run- 
ning streams of considerable size, but which are 
quite dry at all other times. Across one of these 
water-courses, Mr. Rose formed a strong embank- 
ment, sufficiently broad at the surface to serve the 
additional purpose of a cart-road, from bank to 
bank. The result equalled his highest expecta- 
tions : the embankment has permanently dsmmed 
up a large quantity of water, of excellent quality, 
sufficient to affi)rd an abundant supply at all sea- 
sons for his farming establishment, besides forming 
an ornamental sheet of water in the vicinity of his 
residence. Water, dammed up in this way, or 
even collected in large basins formed for the pur- 
pose, is not liable to become putrid in New South 
Wales. There are many farms in the colony that 
have no other water than what is thus collected 
from the surface, during heavy rains, in natural 
basins, or water-hohs^ as they are called by the 
colonists ; the water in such holes remaining pure 
and w^holesome to the last drop. It w^ould be 
difficult to account for the formation of these 
natural basins,, or reservoirs, some of which are of 
great depth, and have more the appearance of ar- 
tificial, than of natural productions ; but their ex- 
istence in all parts of the country is a blessing of 
incalculable value to the colonial community. 

About three miles beyond Campbelltown, to the 
right, is the dairy-farm or estate of Glenlee. — 
There is a large extent of cleared land on this 
estate ; the greater part of w hich has been laid down 
with English grasses, the paddocks being separated 
from each other by hedges of quince orlemon- tree. 



PORT PHILIP, 

CALLED " VICTORIA" BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT, 1850. 



Port Philip, called Australia Felix^ was first 
surveyed in 1802, though it had been dii^covered 
several years before that time, and named after 
the first governor of the colony, Captain Arthur 
Philip, H.N., who, as we have already seen, ac- 
companied the first batch of convicts to New 
South Wales. It is an imment^e harbour, large 
enough to accommodate every British fleet that 
sails, measuring forty miles long, by thirty- five 
miles broad, and containing little short of 1,000,000 
of acres of water. Although this harbour commu- 
nicates with the ocean by a very narrow entrance, 
there is occasionally a heavy sea ; but there is suf- 
ficient water for the largest vessels, as far up as 
Williamstown, a point near the mouth of the river 
Yarra Yarra, but which town, unfortunately, is 
very indifierently supplied with water. There 
can be no doubt that Port Philip, and the thriving 
town of Melbourne, is a very rising settlement ; 
and from the richness and fertility of the sur- 
rounding country, almost without limit, nothing 
can prevent its rapid prosperity. Already the 
sheep amount to 8,000,000 ; rapidly increasing ; 
and as the means of the settlers who possess these 
sheep are likewise increasing, it gives employment 
to the numerous artizans in the town of Melbourne, 
where several vessels of seventy tons burthen may 
be seen at all times receiving or discharging car- 
goes, from the neighbouring ports of Launceston, 
Hobart Town, and Sydney. The trade is princi- 
pally with Launceston, however, which is distant 
only two days' sail, and consists chiefly cf pnssen- 



140 



AUSTRALASIA. 



gers backwards and forwards, carrying sheep and 
lumber from Van Diemau's Land, kc. 

Port Philip is situated at the southern extremity 
of Xew South Wales, its latitude beinoj 38 de^. 
south, and its longitude 145 degrees east. It 
opens into Bass's Straits, and, therefore, lies di- 
rectly opposite Tan Dieman's Land ; from the 
northern capital of which, named Launceston, the 
distance across the straits is little more than 200 
miles. Tlie distance from Sydney is about 500 
miles by sea, but by land it does not exceed 250. 

Several of the inhabitants of Xew South Wales, 
under the auspices of the governor, made an ex- 
cursion to the south, in 1824-25. After an ardu- 
ous journey, they reached the coast in the neigh- 
bourhaod of Port Philip, and found the surround- 
ing country one vast plain, thinly wooded, covered 
with rank grass, well watered by several streams, 
and the soil, to all appearance, of the most pro- 
ductive kind. 

In 1826, a party of soldiers were sent from Xew 
South Wales to take possession, and a small forti- 
fication was erected, and afterwards abandoned. 

The permanent occupation of tiiis district was 
■ultimately effected by some colonists from Tan 
Dieman s Land, where the rapid increase in the 
flocks and herds rendered the sheep and cattle- 
runs very limited ; and made the extensive propri- 
etors of the island very anxious to find out some 
new means of providing for their numerous flocks 
and herds. They had received the most flattering 
accounts of the fine pastoral country in the neigh- 
bourhood of Port Philip : and on the 12th of May, 
1835, they despatched an agent with a number of 

articles to Qive in exchange to the natives, together 
... . . . 

with seven civilized aborigines to act as interpreters. 

The agent was successful in his negociatioDj and 



PORT PHILIP. 



141 



returned to Van Dieman's Land on the 14th of 
June, having bartered with the natives for 600,000 
acres of land. Vessels were freighted with little 
delay, and flocks and herds were quickly conveyed 
,to the newdy-purchased territory. The British 
government refused to ratify the treaty, assigning 
several valid reasons, and Sir Richard Burke, the 
governor of New South Wales, issued a proclama- 
tion, declaring the treaty void, and the parties 
trespassers. 

After this proclamation the Port Philip colony 
coul(4- be considered in no other light than as one 
composed of squatters. It continued to increase 
rapidly, notwithstanding ; so much so, indeed, that 
the government, before a year had elapsed, found 
it necessary to transmit orders to Sir Richard 
Bourke, to appoint magistrates and other officers, 
to manage its affairs, and to put the land up for 
sale at the same price as in other parts of l^ew 
South Wales. 

By the 1st of Juue, 1836, (one year from the 
agent's visit), 177 persons had settled at the new 
colony, and had imported from Yan Dieman's 
Land, sheep, cattle, and other property to the 
amount of £110,000. 

The South Australian Company circulated a 
pamphlet, entitled The Great South Land," in 
which tlie following observations are made upon 
Port PhiHp :— 

" Neither in any moral or social point of view, nor as 
regards systematic regulation or commercial position, can 
Port Philip compete with South Australia. The former is 
tinder the old dispersion and convict system. For the 
mere squatter, who is content to lead a savage life in the 
wilds, remote from the decencies of society, with no com- 
pany but his felon dependants, it may, perhaps, be a suit- 
able receptacle." 



142 



AUSTRALASIA. 



A few short years gave sufficient proof of the 
erroneousness of this statement. 

The region behind Port Philip, with the river 
Murray to the South, watered by the Wimmera 
and the Glenelg on the west, and with the Bay- 
ungan and the Oveason, meandering to the eastward, 
is most appropriately designated by the name of 
Australia Felix. 

The Murray, perhaps the largest river in all 
Australia, arises among the mountains, and receives 
in its course various other rivers of considerable 
magnitude. These flow over extensive pla^s in 
directions nearly parallel to the main stream, and 
thus irrigate and fertilise a great extent of country. 
The current of these rivers, falling as they do from 
mountains of great height, is perpetual, while, on 
the other hand, the rivers in other parts of this 
extensive territory are dried up during the summer 
season, and seldom deserve any better appellation 
than chains of ponds. 

Hills of moderate height occupy the central 
country between the Murray and the ocean, thinly 
or partially wooded, and covered with pasturage of 
the richest quality. The lower country, both on 
the northern and southern skirts of these hills, is 
chiefly open ; slightly undulating towards the coast 
on the south ; and, in general, well supplied with 
water. 

The grassy plains which extend northward from 
these thinly wooded hills, are chequered by the 
channels of many streams falling from them, and by 
the more permanent and extensive waters of deep 
lagoons, which are numerous on the face of these 
plains, as if intended by an all-merciful Creator to 
correct the deflciencies of a climate, othervvist too 
dry for an industrious and increasing people, by 
preserving in these abundant reservoirs the surplus 



PORT PHILIP. 



US 



water of the large river ; and indeed, it would al- 
most be impossible to find a finer country for the 
rearing of cattle than this. 

In the western portion small rivers radiate from 
the Grampians, an elevated and isolated mass, pre- 
senting no impediment to a free comjuunication 
through the beautiful and fertile country around 
its base. Hence that enormous labour, necessary 
in order to obtain access to some parts, and for 
crossing contiguous ranges to reach others, by 
passes like those essential to the prosperity of New 
Sout|^ Wales, might be in a great degree dispensed 
with in that southern region. 

Toward the gea coast on the south, and adjacent 
to the open downs between the Grampians and Port 
Philip, there is a low tract consisting of very rich 
black soil, apparently the best imaginable for the 
cultivation of grain in such a climate. 

On part of the low ridges of hills near Cape 
Kelson and Portland Bay, are forests of very large 
trees of stringy bark, iron bark, and the useful 
enclyptus, much of which, it may naturally be ex- 
pected, is destined to float in ships on the neigh* 
bouring ocean. 

The character of the country behind Cape 
Northumberland, affords fair promise of a harbour 
in the shore to the w^estward. Such a port would 
probably possess advantages over any other on the 
Southern coast ; for, a railroad from thence, along 
the skirts of the interior level country, would 
fequire but trifling artificial levelling, and might 
extend to the tropic of Capricorn, or even beyond 
it, thus affording the means of expeditious commu- 
nications between all the fine districts on the 
interior side of the coast ranges, and a sea port to 
the westward of Bass's Straits. 

The river Murray, fed by the lofty mountains on 



144 



AUSTRi^LASIA. 



the east, carries to the sea a body of fresh water 
Viiificient to irrigate the whole country, and this is 
in general so level, even to a great distance from its 
banks, that the abundant waters of the river might 
probably be turned into canals, for the purpose 
either of supplying natural deficiencies of water at 
particular places, or of affording the means of tran- 
sport across the wide plains. 

The high mountains in the east have not yet been 
fully explored, but their very appearance is extreme- 
ly refreshing in a country where the heat is some- 
times great. The land is, in short, open and avail- 
able in its present state for all the purp(iles of 
civilised man. Major Mitchell, in the account he 
published of his Tour in this quarter, says, We 
traversed it in two directions, with heavy carts, 
meeting no other obstruction than the softness of 
the rich soil, and in returning over fiowery plains 
and green hills, fanned by the breezes of early 
spring. I named this region Australia Felix, thB 
better to distinguish it from the parched deserts of 
the interior country where we had wandered so 
unprofitably and so long." 

In approaching from the north-east, after cross- 
ing the Murray, and surmounting Mount Macedon, 
the eye is charmed by most beautiful vistas, gentle 
slopes wooded in picturesque clumps, and relieved 
in the distance by towering hills. A great portion 
of the land is rapidly progressing towards a state 
of cultivation, and would be still more rapid in its 
improvement were it not for the want of labourers. 
One gentleman reports "Agricultural labourers ar? 
at the present time (1848) receiving from £ \0 to 
^50 per annum, with immense rations <fec., but even 
at these wages they are very scarce, and such as 
are to be had are in general so ill behaved and 
given to liquor, that in many cases it would be far 



PORT PHILIP. 



145 



more profitable for the proprietor to allow the land 
to remain in its natural state, than to have anything 
to do with the great majority of agricultural 
labourers that come to this country. How happy 
would it be for thousands of sober and industrious 
labourers in the mother country, could they take 
their families— the greater number of children the 
better — to this land of plenty where employment 
is certain, and at very mwch higher wages 
than there is any possibility of them ever ob- 
taining at home. It is sober men that are 
wanted, and if several thousands were coming out 
for ^me years, there would be still room for as 
many more ; they would all meet with a cordial 
welcome." 

In corroboration of this statement we will here 
make an extract of a letter from a highly respect- 
able and influential house in Sydney : speaking of 
Port Philip the writer says : — 

" The settlers in that quarter are quite at a stand 
still for want of labourers and mechanics of the 
ordinary descriptions. A party of very indifferent 
government emigrants, who were lately sent there 
by the governor, w^ere immediately engaged at very 
high wages. A friend of ours on wdiose judgment 
and experience of the colony we can depend, writes 
to us under date 6th. inst., Labour is the grand 
commodity which the settlement is now in need of ; 
any common labourer can here command 6s. 6d. to 
7s. a day ; shepherds cannot be had for less than' 
£40 a year, with full rations ; bullock drivers earn 
a guinea a week, with board and lodgings ; brick- 
layers, masons, quarry-men, carpenters, blacksmiths, 
and all useful mechanics are in great request. I feel 
satisfied that a monthly import of two hundred 
couples with small families, or without children, 

H 



146 



AUSTRALASIA. 



would obtain very high wages. Women servants 
cannot be obtained here — £15 to £20 per annum 
wages would be readily given by families to female 
servants of good character." 

A visitor to the bush observes, " Though it is 
upwards of thirteen years since the first settlers 
came over here with their sheep from Yan Dieman's 
Land, and they have continued to come over since 
the period of prosperity dates, since government 
have had any establishment or authority here, and 
within this period its growth has been most rapid. 
It appears by the records kept since the arri^Sl of 
a commandant, comptroller of the customs, <fec., 
that the value of imports in the district of Port 
Philip, had risen in 1845 to £205,390. During 
the same year the customs duties amounted to 
£42,536 (no duty is levied on live stock,) and it is 
calculated that there are (1846 — a census of the 
population being taken every five years) a popula- 
tion of 32,879.'^ The town (Melbourne) seems 
crowded with inhabitants, but without habitations. 
They come so fast, that it is impossible to provide 
themselves with houses, and they are living in tents 
and huts, of all manner of shapes. Indeed, no one 
likes to erect habitations on ground not their own, 
and which might so soon be brought to public sale 
by government, so that the place has a most rude 
and motley appearance. But the lines of the town 
and streets are now fixed, and allotments disposed 
of by auction. The competition to secure the 
allotments has been great, and many persons con- 
gregated at the sale. There were hundreds of per- 
sons present, and the half -acre allotments fetched 

* The population now cannot be much if any tiling under 
80,000. 



PORT PHILIP. 147 

from £IS to £95 each, averaging £38 each. The 
buyers immediately commenced to build, and in a 
very short time a great many houses were erected. 
There is in the houses of the better classes here a 
strange mixture of refinement and rudeness. There 
is not the least style or finish about the buildings, 
most of them unceiled and unplastered, whilst 
they contain many elegant and tasteful articles of 
furniture. There is not the least doubt that this 
settlement will rise more rapidly than any in this 
colony was ever known to do, and that it will soon 
become one of the most important and flourishing 
districts of the colony. With so much good land 
in the neighbourhood of a sea port, and with so 
fine a country for sheep all around it, whilst the 
elder colonies within any reasonable distance of the 
coast are already overstocked,"^ there is nothing 
can prevent it becoming populated and prosperous. 
No idea of this part of New Holland was enter- 
tained until it was explored, but now it must be- 
come one of the most important portions of this 
island." 

Mr. James says — The first part of the land we 
explored was, for twenty miles, good for nothing, 
over stony barren scrubs ; but after that, the au- 
thor arrived in view of Mount Macedon, and found 
the country every thing, and even more than it had 
been represented. The whole region of Port 
PhiHp seems to be one vast pasture of the most 
valuable character, and every requisite seems to 
exist here to raise the character of the district to a 
place of the first consequence. The only draw- 
back will be labour, which is already well reward- 

* We must here entirely dissent from this statement of 
the writer ; so far from bein^e: stocked, there is not a dis- 
trict in New South Wales but what could comfortably sup- 
port twenty times its present population. 



148 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ed, and no doubt the demand will go on every year 
increasing. About Geelong, the ' Campaspe,' or 
the river ' Plenty,' all g^razing speculators must 
succeed. To use the quaint and affected expres- 
sion of an elegant young squatter whom the author 
Tisited, surrounded with some thousands of sheep, 
he was getting disgustingly rich, and so will others 
who adopt the same pursuits in this favoured region. 

" But the government must be removed from, 
and made independent of, that of New South 
Wales.* It is impossible to manage properly an 
important settlement of this magnitude, nearly 
three times the extent of Van Dieman's Land, 
without a separate establishment for Port Philip, 
or rather Australia Felix, which should be erected 
into a distinct administration. 

Australia Felix is comparatively a recent dis- 
covery, which was explored by Major Mitchell. 
The country begins on the south-eastern boundary 
of the Commissioners' territory, in 141 degrees 
east, near the mouth of the Glenelg river, and the 
place of settlement and township will be Portland 
Bay. In the months of November, December, 
January, and February, this bay is unfortunately 
exposed to the violence of the prevailing easterly 
winds, which so agitate the sea as to make land- 
ing in summer time out of boats disagreeable, and 
frequently extremely dangerous ; but the anchor- 
age is safe and spacious for the remainder of the 
year. The shore a;bounds in fresh water, and the 
interior, for seventy miles back, exhibits one of the 
richest and most desirable countries in the world, fit 
for any thing, for either sheep, cattle, or the plough ; 
and being considerably more temperate than St. 
Vincent's Gulph- — the difference of latitude being 



* This has been done in 1851. 



PORT PHILIP. 



149 



about the same as between the Thames and the 
Tweed — Portland Bay is a very agreeable climate, 
and already exports potatoes, wheat, fat sheep, and 
cattle. The road from Portland Bay is also good, 
and well marked all the way to Sydney, a distance 
of 700 miles, which, for overland communication, 
is a decided advantage. To the north-east of Port- 
land Bay, and the fine country just spoken of, are 
good runs for sheep and cattle down to the lakes, 
and here may be seen large flocks of Yan Dieman's 
Land sheep depasturing all the way up to Mount 
Macedon, and down to Geelong. The country 
about Cape Otway is rocky and mountainous. 
This Cape is opposite to King's Island, and 
forms the entrance to Bass' Straits, which is only 
forty miles broad in this part ; but at the back of 
the high lands of the Cape the grass is good, though 
the fresh water is not so abundant as in the rear 
of Portland Bay. From the richness and beauty 
of the land, and the convenience of the bay, it has 
attracted many valuable settlers. From its vici- 
nity to Van Dieman's Land and South Australia, 
the rapidity of communication between this por- 
tion of New South Wales and the adjacent islands 
of the Pacific is likely to render it one of the most 
favourable localities the emigrant. By sailing 
from England for Port Philip, the length and ex- 
pense of the vovage will be found to be consider- 
ably less than if Sydney or Adelaide were made 
the landing point. The voyage through Bass' 
Straits is now becoming a matter of weekly fami- 
liarity, however serious it at one time appeared. 
It is a question which posterity alone can decide, 
whether the south or eastern coast should have 
been fixed upon as the cradle of the infant colony. 
At the present moment, to the young man of small 
capital, and unencumbered by a family, who does 



150 



AUSTRALASIA. 



not hesitate to betake liimself to tlie bu>]i, and to 
whom the half-yearly fatigues" of sheep-shearing 
may be an indHceinent rather than a drawback, 
Port Philip will now be preferred to Sydney. 

The grand interests bound up in the colonisation 
movement, and those towards which it is to be 
hoped the ambition of tlie very humblest emigrant 
will ultimately tend, is the acquisition of land ; w^e 
will here give some official information from the 
Australian Land Acts, respecting the sale of lands. 

Australian Colonies. — The followiDg are the regii- 
latious now in force under the provisions of the Australian 
Land Act, 5 and 6 Victoria, cap. 36, for the disposal of 
the Waste Lands in the colonies of New South Wales 
(including the Sydney and Port Philip districts, and any 
other district that raay hereafter be opened), South Aus- 
tralia and Western Australia : — 



" 1. All lands will be disposed of by sale alone, and 
must have, once at least, been exposed to public auction. 

2. The lowest upset price will be not less than £1. 
per acre ; but the government will have power to raise the 
same by proclamation, though not again to reduce it. 

^' 3. Th« land will be distinguished into three different 
classes : viz., Town lots. Suburban lots, and Country lots. 

4. Upon town and suburban lots, as well as upon a 
proportion, not exceediog one-tenth, of the whole of the 
country, offered for sale at any auction, the governor will 
have the power of naming a higher than the general or 
lowest upset price ; the country lots on which such power 
is exercised to be designated * Special Country lots.' 

5. Town and suburban lots will in no case be dis- 
posed of except by public auction ; but country lots which 
have already been put up to public auction, and not sold, 
may be disposed of afterwards by private contract at the 
upset price. 

" 6. No lands will be sold by private contract except 
for ready money. When sold by public auction one-tenth, 
at least, of the whole purchase money must be paid down, 
and the remainder within one calendar mouth, or the de- 
posit will be forfeited. 



PORT PHILIP. 



151 



7. Lands will be put up for sale iu lots not exceeding 
one square mile in extent. 

8, As an exception to the general regulations, and 
subject to certain restrictions, laid down in the Australian 
Land Act, the governor will have it in his discretion to dis- 
pose, by private contract, at not less than the lowest upset 
price for the district, of blocks comprising 20,000 acres 
or more. 

" 8. Persons will be at liberty to make payments for 
colonial lands in this country, for which payment or de- 
posit they will receive an order for credit to the same 
amount in any purchase of land they may effect in the 
colony, and will have the privilege of naming a propor- 
tionate number of emigrants for a free passage, as explained 
in the next article. The deposits must be made in one or 
more sums of £10Q. each at the Bank of England, to the 
aecount of the Colonial Land and Emigration Commis- 
sioners ; and the depositor must state at the time the 
colony in which the land is to be selected, and give notice 
to the Commissioners of the deposit. Upon production of 
the Bank's receipt for the money, the commissioners will 
furnish the depositor with a certificate stating the amount 
which he has paid, and entitling him to obtain credit for 
that sum in any purchase which he may effect in the co- 
lony, subject to all rules and regulations in force in the 
colony at the time such purchase may be made. 

" 10. For every sum deposited, as above, the depositor 
will be entitled, for six months from the date of payment, 
to name a number of properly qualified emigrants, equal 
to five adults, for a free passage : two children, between 
one and fourteen, are to be reckoned as equal to one adult. 
The emigrants are required to be chosen from the class of 
mechanics and handicraftsmen, agricultural labourers or 
domestic servants, and must be going out with the inten- 
tion to work for wages. They are to be subject to the 
approval of the commissioners, and must, in all respects, 
fall within their general regulations on the selection of 
labourers." 

In addition to the foregoing, the following regu- 
lations are attended to at the government office in 
Sydney : — 

When a survey has been made of a parish, a 
chart will be exhibited in the surveyor-gep*^rars 



152 



AUSTRALASIA. 



office, showing its boundaries, divided into sections 
of one square mile, or 640 acres. 

If any person shall be desirous of purchasing 
lands so notified as disposable, application must be 
made through the surveyor general, in a printed 
form, copies of which may be obtained, at his 
office, on payment of a fee of two shillings and 
sixpence for each. 

If the spot applied for should contain less than 
640 acres, the reason for the applicant's wishing to 
obtain it must be explained as to the particular cir- 
cumstances. 

The lands for the purchase of which application 
shall be made, will be advertised for one month, 
and will then be sold by auction to the highest 
bidder, in lots of one section or 640 acres, as nearly 
as practicable, provided that the price oflPered shall 
at least amount to the lowest upset price required 
by the recent land regulations. 

Before the bidding is accepted, a deposit of ten 
per cent must be laid down, and an engagement 
signed to pay the balance in a month, and if then 
not paid, the deposit is forfeited, and a new sale 
takes place. 

Such are the regulations for the purchase of land 
m the Australian colonies (New South Wales, 
Southern Australia, Western Australia, and New 
Zealand) : viz., — by auction, and at the lowest upset 
price, £1. per acre. Country lands, not bought at the 
public sales, may afterwards be bought at the 
upset prices as a first price. 

The proceeds of the sales, as well as the rents of 
crown lands in Australia, are dedicated to provide 
the necessary funds for free passages, to assist the 
supply of labour in the colony. The fund is not 
intended for the purposes of relief to persons in 
this country ; but to supply the colonists with the 



PORT PHILIP. 



153 



particular description of labour of which they stand 
most in need ; since by two circamstances, viz., 
the abolition of the assignment of convicts to New 
South Wales, now followed by the abandonment of 
the convict system altogether, and the introduction 
of the Wakefield system of land sale.*^, which ruined 
the emigrant fund, by raising the upset price of 
land to £l. per acre. New South Wales and South 
Australia are at present tlie only colonies that, 
under the operation of this system, supply the 
means of emigration at all. 

It is necessary, however, that where such means 
are supplied, the emigrants selected for a free 
passage to these colonies are restricted to certain 
regulations: — In terms — that the emigrants must 
be chiefly agricultural labourers, shepherds, and 
domestic and farm servants. A few country 
mechanics, such as blacksmiths, wheelwrights, 
carpenters, &c., may also be accepted. 

Such are the government limitations as to the 
trade or calling of free emigrants ; but we are of 
opinion that town-bred mechanics would obtain a 
preference in the colony ; and that it is not only 
impolitic but unjust, not to extend the benefit of 
free emigration to the municipal artizans, w^ho are 
acknowledged to be as well, if not better, qualified 
for exercising their respective professions than any 
mechanic bred up in some obscure hamlet. As the 
rule stands, they must be all adults, capable of 
labour and working for wages, as well as going out 
with the intention of settling in the colony. In- 
tending traders, or purchasers of land, or their 
families, are not allowed to be selected for a free 
passage which is only designed for such as have 
not the means of paying. Reduced tradesmen and 
paupers are likewise declared ineligible — with what 
justice we cannot perceive. Young married cou- 
H 2 



154 



AUSTRALASIA. 



pies without children are the most acceptable can- 
didates ; for the free emigrants must consist chiefly 
of married couples not above forty years of age. 
If still healthy and capable of labour, a year over 
that will be allowed for every child above fourteen 
years of age. Free passage will be given to no 
family including more than two children under 
seven, or more than three under ten years of age; 
but in particular cases, larger families are granted a 
passage, by paying €7. each for the supernumerary 
children. Under all circumstances, however,^ fami- 
lies with many children are liable to be delayed in 
obtaining passages. Parents are not in any case 
permitted to be separated from children under 
eighteen years of age. Single women under that 
age are not admii^^ible without their parents, unless 
emigrating under the care of some near married 
relative, or under engagement as domestic servants 
to ladies going out as cabin passengers in the same 
ship. Above thirty -five years of age they are not 
accepted on any account whatever^ Single men 
must also be between eighteen and thirty-five years 
of age, and the number taken must correspond to 
that of single women in the same ship. All emi- 
grants who have not had ^mall-pax, must have been 
vaccinated. Relatives of free emigrants are some- 
times allowed the option of going in the same 
vessel, on paying the expense of their passage. 
Before embarkation, £2. must be paid by every 
person above fourteen years of age, and £l. for 
every child above one and under fourteen, to meet 
the expense of bedding and mess utensils. Provi- 
sions, medical attendance, and cooking utensils are 
provided by the commissioners ; also new mat- 
tresses, bolsters, blankets, and counterpanes; canvas 
bags, to contain linen, <fec. ; knives, forks, spoons, 
metal plates and drinking cups. These articles the 



P'>RT PHILIP. 



155 



emigrants ai^e permitted to keep after arrival in the 
colony, provided their behaviour has been satisfac- 
tory on the voyage out. The smallest quantity of 
clothing,, however, that free eniigrants are allovved 
to embark with is, — for males, six shirts, two pairs 
shoes, six pairs stockings, and two complete suits 
of extericp clothing ; for females, six shifts, two 
gowns, two flannel petticoats, six pairs stockings, 
two pairs shoes, their own sheets and towels, and 
at least two pounds of soap. Without this supply 
of clothing, the inspector appointed by the com- 
missioners, will not allow" the emigrant to pass ; 
but as a general rule the more abundant the stock 
of clothing, the better for health and comfort, on 
the passage. The usual length of the voyage is 
about four months ; and no matter what the season 
of the year may be, the emigrants have to pass 
through very hot and very cold weather, and 
should therefore be prepared for both. The free 
emigrants on arriving in the colony, are at perfect 
liberty to dispose of themselves as they think 
proper: no repayment is expected for the passage 
out. Only one thing is required of them, the 
strict observance of the following regulations during 
the voyage. The regulations present a lively pic- 
ture of life on shipboard, during an emigrant 
voyage. 

" Perfect order and cleanliness being indispensable to 
health and comfort, especially on board ship, and in long 
voyages, the following rules and regulations will be adopted 
and enforced among the steerage passengers on the voyage 
to Australia : — 

" 1. Every person to be out of bed at seven o'clock in 
the morning. 

2. All the beds to be rolled up neatly every morning 
by those who use them : and in fine weather carried on 
deck by the same parties, at the time tlje surgeon shall 
direct. 



156 



AUSTRALASIA. 



" 3. Breakfast at eight o'clock. 

" 4. Decks, above and below, to be cleaned at nine 
o'clock. 

5. Dinner at one o'clock. 

"6. Tea, coffee, or cocoa, at six o'clock. 

'^7. The whole of the steerage passengers, must, as 
soon after they are all embarked as practicable, be classed by 
the surgeon superintendent in u:iesses equal to eight adults 
in each (reckoning children according to their age) and a 
captain of each mess must be then appointed by the sur- 
geon, whose business it shall be to receive the food from 
the cook, for all who compose his, or her mess, and to 
share the same in fair and just proportions, with his or her 
comrades in each mess. 'No person shall go to the cook 
at meal times, but the captain of each mess. 

" 8. Two respectable men (fathers or husbands) shall 
be selected by the surgeon, for the satisfaction of all the 
passengers, to see in turns, the whole of the provisions 
weighed and delivered each day, by the officer appointed 
for that purpose, so that every person may know that jus- 
tice is done in this respect. 

" 9. Two males and two females, of discretion and ex- 
perience, shall be selected by the surgeon, to act as over- 
seers, as respects the moral conduct and personal cleanli- 
ness, and habits of order and propriety among all the 
steerage passengers. It shall be their business to hear and 
inquire into any cases of insubordination, neglect of clean- 
liness, immorality, or other offences against propriety and 
the comfort of all on board, and to report to the surgeon 
in cases which may require it ; and his decision shall be 
binding in every case. 

^■10. No male passenger shall at any time, nor under 
any pretence whatever, be permitted to go into the female 
sleeping apartment, nor the females into that of the male, 
without the permission of the surgeon ; the preservation of 
propriety on board demands entire conformity to this 
regulation. 

11. The surgeon to appoint four strong capable men, 
and the same number of women, who shall be willing to 
undertake the duty of cleaning out, every morning, the 
whole of their respective apartments thoroughly ; to see 
the bedding is all got on deck in fine weather to be aired, 
And to sweep the lower deck after each meal ; and the 
bottom boards of the berths to be removed, dry scrubbed, 
and taken on d^ck two or three times a week, or as often 
as the surgeon may direct. To each of these eight persons, 



PORT PHILIP. 



157 



the sum of £3. shall be paid on arrival, provided the sur- 
geon shall certify that each person, so employed, has 
actively, and with good will and obedience to his 
wishes, satisfactorily performed this duty during the 
whole voyage. 

12/ Prior to the cleaners commencing their work 
each morning, every person, whatever age, shall (unless 
the state of the weather render it improper.) go on the 
upper deck, and remain there until the apartments have 
been thoroughly cleaned out, or so long as the surgeon 
shall direct. 

" 13. Schools for the children, and for such adults 
may be disposed to join, are to be formed on board, under 
the surgeon's approval ; and when the weather will allovf 
of it, the teachers are to carry on their duties from ten to 
twelve forenoon, and from two to four afternoon. A 
suitable library, of elementary, religious, moral, and enter* 
taining books, is supplied for each emigrant ship ; they are 
returned at the close of each day to the teachers, and 
taken proper care of. Bibles and Prayer-Books are also 
put on board for general use. 

" 14. The above being a benevolent and Christian 
work, and calculated to induce quiet and order on board, 
the services of those who are competent are requested as 
teachers ; they are to be appointed by the surgeon, and 
conduct the business committed to them as he shall 
sanction. 

" 15. The surgeon shall cause prayers to be read daily 
in each apartment, unless prevented by the state of the 
weather ; and on every Sunday morning, the people will 
be expected to assemble on the upper deck at ten o'clock, 
in clean and respectable 9.ttire, becoming that sacred day. 
After the surgeon has seen that every person is cleanly 
and becomingly dressed, Divine Service shall be performed 
to all on board. 

16. Washing shall be allowed at fixed hours, on the 
upper deck, on two days (to be appointed by the surgeon,) 
in each week, and on no other days ; and it is strictly 
forbidden to wash in the sleeping apartments below, or to 
spill any water on that deck ; neither are any clothes to 
be dried below. 

17. The use of spirits is strictly prohibited. 

18. No smoking to be allowed in the sleeping apart- 
ments, and only on the upper deck at such times as the 
surgeon shall sanction. 

" 19. A safety lamp to be kept burning near the hatch- 



158 



AUSTRALASIA. 



way, in each apai-tment, during the night, which shall not 
be removed ; no other light to be permitted below, after 
the hour fixed by the surgeon for putting out the lights. 

'^20. It is strongly recommended that a portion of the 
steerage passengers, as may be fixed by the surgeon, should, 
during the warm, part of the voyage, take it in turn to be 
on deck during the night, in order to keep the sleeping 
apartments in a cool and healthy state : no person, how- 
ever, will be privileged to do this without the permission 
of the surgeon superintendent. 

''21. Any person acting contrary to these regulations, 
shall have his or her wine stopped for the rest of the 
voyage. 

22. These rules and regulations, having for their 
object, solely, the comfort, health, and happiness of every 
person on board, every individual is earnestly exhorted to 
conform to them, and to set an example of ready and 
cordial co-operation with the surgeon superintendent in 
preventing their infi^actiou by any ill-tempered or perverse 
person. A record will be daily kept by the surgeon, 
of the conduct of every person on board, and according 
to their good or improper behavioui', will be the report 
made of them to the colony. Their future success there 
will be seriously affected by their conduct on the voyage. 
Every one should remember that the general, and not 
exclusively individual, comfort and well-being is the great 
object which must be constantly prosecuted, and then 
every person will see it to be his and her duty and interest 
to conform to the rules laid down." 

Such are the salutary rules and regulatioDS for 
the conduct of free emigrants on their voyage to 
Australia; and those arriving in a happy and 
orderly ship may always expect the best offers of 
employment, whilst quarrelsome and refractory 
persons will be avoided. 

Having thus given the regulations for the pur- 
chase of land, as well as those for the conduct of 
emigrants on the voyage, we will here insert the 
Surveyor-generars letter to Dr. Lang, containing 
a valuable enumeration of the various districts 
where there is much unoccupied land, which will 



PORT PHILIP. 



15.9 



be of importance to such as may be inclined to 
purchase immediately on their arrival. 

" I shall subjoin the names of such places as seem most 
eligible, and where the waste lands are of very good qua- 
lity, and in general extensive. 

To the Southward — the limits of our present colony 
terminate on the barders of one of the finest regions in 
the world for the establishment of an agricultural popula- 
tion, — I mean the banks of the Yass, the Borrowa, and 
Murrumbidgee ; consisting of rich open plains, watered by 
copious never-failing streams. To that country level 
roads may be made the whole of the way from Sydney, 
and in time, the sea-coast, near to it, may also be rendered 
accessible by the same means. To enumerate particular 
parts of that extensive country is needless at present. 

" The upper p?rts of the Shoalhaven river are also, in 
general, very good from Kurraduebidgee soutiiward : — 
there are many parts of the banks and valleys opening on 
this river which might maintain a very numerous agricul- 
tural population. 

" The shores of Bateman Bay, and the lower part of the 
river called Clywd, are still very little taken up, and con- 
tain much very superior land for cultivation. 

" To. the westward of Burra-burralagern, is a tract of 
beautiful land ; the situation is isolated, but to a small 
community it would prove, perhaps, eligible enough ; it is 
watered by some fine mountam streams, and is in the 
immediate vicinity of the sheep stations of Messrs. 
M' Arthur, M'Alister, &c. 

Goulbourn Plains are still but thinly peopled, although 
consisting in general of good wheat land, and in; every re- 
spect a good situation for forming a population. North- 
ward of these is Tarlo, where some good land is still 
vacant. 

Bungonia, where a township has been laid out. In 
this vicinity there is much land very eligible for small 
farms. A few miles nearer Sydney, at Bumballa, near the 
Shoalhaven river there is much good land still unlocated ; 
and at Cambewurra, an extensive portion of table land 
south of lUawarra, which consists of about sixteen square 
miles of the richest laud, wholly unlocated, although over- 
looking the sea, and very near Jervis bay, which is likely 
to become, in a few years,^ the port of Argyle, &c. 

" The Kangaroo river, a branch of the Shoalhaven river- 



160 



AUSTRALASIA. 



flows in a secluded valley, where the land is of an excel- 
lent description ; this river is immediately behind Cambe- 
wurra; the Shoalhaven may be rendered navigable to 
within a few miles of it. 

" Illawarra — there is a tract of land still vacant, very 
eligible for a small agricultural community. 

" East Bargo — some good land vacant, were it acces- 
sible by the road proposed. 

" West Bargo consists of much land fit for cultivation, 
still vacant. 

Burragorang (the bed of the Xattai and WoUondilly 
rivers,) where the land is excellent, and capable of con- 
taining a very numerous population. 

Lake George — vai-ious parts of the shores of this lake. 
^' Breadalbane Plains — Lake Bathurst. 
^' Sutton Forest — about 5^'undialla, Black Bob's Creek. 
" Paddy's river — near the new line of road. 

Westward. — The heads of the river Lachlan. Bathurst 
(numerous fine valleys in this county). Capertree. Mudgee. 
Talbragar. Yale of Clywd. Solitary Creek. JSTew road to 
Bathurst (beyond Gray's station). Ditto, near Stoney 
range. 

Northward. — Brisbane water. Wyong Creek (the upper 
part terminating in rich cedar ravines). Southern shore 
of Toggerah Beech Lagoon. Lake M'Quarrie. Watagan 
or Sugar-loaf Creek (a branch of the Wolombi). Valley at 
the head of the Ellalong. Head of Wallis' Crook. Wil- 
liams River (upper part). Kingdom Ponds (ditto). Head 
of Page's River (on the road to Liverpool Plains). Banks 
of the higher tributaries to the Goulburn river. Jerry's 
Plains. Liverpool Plains — the numerous valleys at the 
head of these, situated between them and Sydney, con- 
tain land of excellent quality and well watered. Port 
M'Quarrie. 

" I fear the situations will not be at all intelligible to you 
without the map ; but the list may serve to point out the 
variety and extent of eligible places to which bodies of 
agricultural emigrants might be led." 

These are some of the districts where land may 
at all times be obtained ; but it may suit some 
emigrants better to lay out their capital on sheep 
and cattle, and have them grazed under a trust- 
worthy person, paying for such management the 



PORT PHILIP. 



161 



usual allowance of thirds on increase and wool, or 
to buy an already improved farm, though at a much 
higher price, even four times that of the govern- 
ment rate per acre. This last plan is strongly 
recommended by Dr. Lang, and it is but seldom 
the agricultural emigrant will find reason to differ 
from his opinion. 

There are many persons in the mother country, 
for whom it would be the height of folly to emi- 
grate to New South Wales, or indeed to any of the 
colonies. In an old country — a country in a high 
state of civilization and advancement — there are 
numerous arts and branches of business for which 
there cannot possibly be any demand in a young 
colony ; and it is principally owing to the want of 
proper attention to this important point, that the 
entire failure of many emigrants, and their loud 
complaints against the colonies generally, have 
originated. Previous to leaving his native land, 
the intending emigrant should by all means ascer- 
tain whether his haVuts and pursuits are adapted 
to that new state of society which he will find pre- 
vailing in the distant land of his adoption. Two 
muslin weavers, who had b^>en tolerably comfortable 
in their native country, wishing to improve their 
circumstances, arrived with large families in New 
South Wales, and found to their mortification that 
there was no demand for their labour. They ex- 
claimed loudly against the colony, and threatened 
to write home against the government agents and 
committees, who had induced them to emigrate, 
simply because they discovered, when too late, 
that muslin weavers were not wanted. These men, 
however, were brought to their senses by stern 
necessity ; discarding the shuttle, therefore, they 
took to the spade, and with the assistance of their 
children, soon found themselves in more com- 



162 



AUSTRALASIA. 



fortable circumstances than ever tliey could have 
expected to be by continuing at the loom. 

For labourers of all classe-^, for shepherds, and 
for mechanics of those handicrafts that are required 
in the building of houses and ships, or in the 
swaintenance of agriculture and commerce, the 
Australian colonies present a boundless field for 
employment, at remunerating wages. With respect 
to the description of labourers and workmen 
wanted, we c<^py the following enumeration from 
the Government Colonisation Circular : — 

Boathuilders — Ts. 6d. per day. See Shipwrights^ 
Brickmakei^s — 35s. per thousand for making. Good work- 
men will always find employment in South Australia. 
Blacksmiths ^£4:1. to £55. per annum. Good workmen 
in demand. 

Brewers — Maltsters — 3s. to 4s. a day (board and lodging). 

Brewers are increasing. 
, Bashetmakers — A few good workmen would find this a 

profitable trade. Common labourers employed. 
Chairinakers — 6s. to Ss, per day. 

Carpenters — 5s. 6d, to 7s. 6d. per day. Always in de- 
mand, especially good workmen. 

Caulkers — Ss. to 9s. a day. Work usually done by 
shipwrights. 

Coopers — 5s. to 6s. per day. 

Cabinetmakers and Upholsterers — 6s. to 8s. per day. 
Cooks — 3s. to 8s. per week, with rations. Men usually 

employed. Careful and steady men wanted. 
Coppersmiths — 30s. to 40s. per week. Good workmen 

would find employment. 
Dairymen — £10. to £15. per annum, lodgings and rations. 

In extreme demand. 
Engineers — 36s. per week, and rations. The class of men 

here meant are properly engine-men and blacksmiths. 
Farriers — 6s. to 7s. per day. Much in demand. 
Fencers — 30s. to 40s. per week ; or post and rail fences 

2s. aud 3s. 6d. per rod. 
Field-lahourers — £20, to £40. per annum, and rations. 

All kinds of field-labourers in demand. 
Gardeners — £25. to £40. per annum, and rations. Always 

in demand. 



PORT PHILIP. 



163 



Gardeners -labourers — £15. to £25. per annum, and ra- 

tions. Much required. 
Glaziers and Plumbers — 4s. 6d. to — per day. A few of the 

latter wanted. 

Harnessmahers and Saddlers — 6s. to 6s. 6d. per day. 

Chiefly supplied by importatiou. 
Joiners — 6s. to Ss. 6d. per day. Good workmen in 

demand. 

Jronfounders—6s. to --per day. Good workmen would 

find employment. 
Locksmiths — 6s. to 7s. per day. Good workmen would 

find employment. 
Millwrights — 6s. to 8s. per day. Wanted to fit up 

wooden gear. 

Milkmen — £12. to £20. per annum. All kinds of hus- 
bandry in demand. 

Nailors — 40s. per week, and upwards. 

Plasterers — 42s. per week. In demand. An excellent 
trade. 

Ploughmen — £20. to £40. per annum, lodging and ra- 
tions. All agricultural labourers, shepherds, sheep- 
shearers, &c., may be so rated, and are in great 
demand. 

Potters — as labourers, one or two might find employ- 
ment. 

Printers: Compositors and Pressmen — 5s. to 8s. per day. 

Steady men wanted. 
Quarrymen — 4s to 6s. per day. Always in demand. 
Sawyers — 60s. to 87s. 6d. per thousand. In great demand. 
Shipwrights — 55. to 7s. Qd. per day. Good workmen in 
demand. 

Shoemakers — 55. to 75. per day. In great demand. A 
good trade. 

Sailors. — 505. to 60s. per month. Always in demand. 

Stonemawns and Setters. — 5s. 6d. to 7s. per day. In 
great demand. 

Tailors. — 55. to 75. per day. In demand. Piece-work 
one-third higher than in England. 

Turners. — A few might work profitably on their own 
account. 

Vine-dressers. — £10 to £40 per annum, and upwards, 
according to qualification. Skilful men in demand. 

Wheehorights. — 55. to 75. per day ; or £39 to £44 per 
annum, and rations. Good workmen always find em- 
ployment. 

Parchment-maJcers. — Sheep- skins 2d. to 3d each. Parch- 



164 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ment likely to be manufactured for exportation, No de- 
mand at present. 

When rations are mentioned, the usual quantity is 10 
pounds of flour, 2 lbs. of sugar, J lb. tea, and 7 pounds of 
meat, per week. 

With respect to the rate of wages ia Australia, 
and the advantages there held out to honest and 
industrious families, it must be borne in mind, that 
the expense of brii^ging up a family in that colony, 
is much less than in England.* We will here ex- 
tract from the prices current ; Melbourne Gazette : — 

"Fresh beef, 4cZ. per lb,; joint, S^d. ; mutton, 3Jc?. ; 
coffee, Is. Id. ; candles, lOd. ; dips, 8d ; salt butter, 2s. ; 
fresh butter, 2s. 6d. ; rice, Sd. ; English soap, 6d. ; sugar, 
4d. ; tobacco, 2s. ; brandy, per gallon, 6s. ; rum, 6s. ; tea, 
per chest, £5. 10s. ; flour, per 100 lbs., £1. 4s.; wethers, 
each, 12 to 15s. ; potatoes, per cwt. 8s ; wheat, per bushel, 
5s. ; maize, ditto, 5s. 6d." 

When children are properly trained, instead of 
being a burden to their parents, in New South 
Wales, they are a source of certain wealth. In- 
dustrious persons, of sober, orderly habits, find no 
difficulty in saving a considerable portion of their 
earnings ; and after a few years' economy they may 
be able, (if mechanics,) to establish themselves in 
desirable localities for carrying on their trade : if 
agriculturists, their savings will enable them to 
rent farms, or to purchase land. Any attempt by 
the latter class, to settle as farmers, on their own 
account, immediately upon arrival in the colony, is 
by no means desirable. They require first to ac- 
quire local experience. They will find that there 
is not only much to learn ; hut what is far more 
difficult, much to unlearn. 

But it is not only the working-classes to whom 

The prices of provisions and the rate of wages depends 
entirely on the demand and supply. The great influx of 
immegrants has caused considerable advance in the former, 
but the latter have increased in proportion. 



PORT PHILIP, 



165 



the benefits to be derived from emigration are con - 
fined. There are many families of respectability 
in Great Britain possessing property to the amount 
of from £2,000 to £5,00u ; but having no means 
of providing for the settlement of their children, 
and having nothing else to depend on for the future 
than the small income derivable from property of 
that amount, to such families, New South Wales 
presents a most eligible prospect for effecting a 
comfortable settlement. With a comparatively 
small portion of their capital they could purchase 
a farm of moderate extent, partially or wholly 
cleared, in one of the settled districts of the colony, 
where in all likelihood they would find respectable 
and agreeable society in their immediate neigh- 
bourhood, and be surrounded with the comforts of 
civilization. A farm of the kind would not only 
furnish a respectable family with all the necessa- 
ries, and many of the comforts of life, but would 
provide profitable employment for their children. 
If they choose to embark largely in sheep-farming, 
or in grazing speculations, tb^ey could either pur- 
chase or rent a tract of land from the government, 
in the distant interior, where their slieep and cattle 
could range in safety under the charge of a kind 
overseer ; but if they chose rather to lend out their 
money at interest, they could obtain 10 per cent, 
with the utmost facility, on security as good as 
any in England. 

Captain Sturt, in the account he gives of his 
Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern 
Australia, publishes a number of estimates, in 
which he shows, that for an outlay of £1,005 on 
sheep, at the end of five years the total value will 
be £5,851. 15.?., after paying all expenses. 

" In short,'' says Dr. Lang, ''New South Wales 
affords the fairest prospect for prudent and indus- 



166 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ti'ious families of moderate capital, whom the pre- 
sent circumstances of the mother country may in- 
duce to emigrate. And let it be remembered by 
all who may have it in their power to promote and 
encourage emigration, that every such family that 
settles in New South Wales contributes eventually 
to the prosperity of Great Britain, through the 
more extensive market which it opens for British 
manufactures, and the direct support it affords to 
British commerce, in all likelihood to a much 
greater extent than if it never had left the British 
shore. 

Suppose the case of a respectable family, living 
in England on £200 or £250 a-year, the interest 
of their whole capital of £5,000 : they will doubt- 
less consider themselves fortunate in having been 
able to invest that capital at 4 per cent., interest, 
but they would much rather have invested it in a 
good business of any kind ; for the head of the 
family is perhaps a man of some energy of mind, 
who is still in the prime of life, and has a numerous 
offspring to provide for. Deterred, however, from 
engaging in business, from the fear of losing their 
whole property in the present competition for the 
profitable investment of capital, they retire to some 
part of the country, where tiiey can rear and edu- 
cate their children as economically as possible. In 
such a situation it is evident that the custom^ even, 
of every respectable family, is no great matter to 
the manufacturer ; for they necessarily do with as 
little as possible: for the same reason, tlie ship- 
owner is very little in their debt, for all he gets by 
carrying home, from beyond seas, the tea and 
sugar, or other commodities they make use of. In 
short, the capital of the family is, comparatively, 
dead to the nation, and so are the energies of the 
capitalist ; for, instead of occupying the place in 



PORT PHILIP. 



167 



society which his abilities and education, combined 
with his pecuniary means, would in other and more 
favourable circumstances^ have entitled him to hold, 
his time is drivelled away, either in shooting, or in 
poring over the newspaper, at the nearest reading- 
room, or in speculating on the propriety of making 
one son a lawyer, another a medical man, and a 
third a clergyman. When the boys are educated 
— which, in the present circumstances of the 
mother-country, is not easily accomplished out of 
an income of £200 a-year — the man who, if he 
felt his own weight or knew his own place in the 
world, would scorn the employment — spends his 
pocket-money in coach- hire, and his time in the 
ante-chambers of the great, actually legging for 
situations for his sons ! Let the reader look at this 
picture^ and then sag if it is not like the actual 
condition of many respectable families in England ! 

Let him look at the same family emigrating to 
New South Wales. Fifteen hundred pounds will 
be sufficient to land the whole family in the colony, 
and purchase a partially improved farm, or estate, 
"with a good house on it, in a settled part of the 
country, and within a moderate distance from 
Sydney ; on which, without any further outlay of 
capital, they may obtain all the necessaries and 
many of the luxuries of life, and which will afford, 
moreover, suitable and sufficient employment for 
the most active mind ! Two thousand pounds of 
their capital, invested at 10 per cent, interest, will 
afford them a return equal to their whole income 
in England ; while the remainder, if invested judi- 
ciously, in cattle or in sheep farming, will in all 
likelihood yield them from twenty to fifty per cent 
interest. The circumstances of the emigrants will, 
therefore, be materially changed for the better, 
and they will accordingly live in a style somewhat 



168 



AUSTRALASIA. 



conformable to tbeir larger income. But others 
will be benefited by this change, for they will no 
longer be content with the limited supply of Bir- 
mingham and Leeds manufactures, that they found 
sufficient in England, and they will consequently 
be much better customers, than they were before, 
to the manufacturers ; whose workmen will, of 
course, be better employed than they were previ- 
ously to their emigration. They could scarce 
afford to keep a riding-horse in England, they can 
now keep a carriage, and of course give employ- 
ment to the various classes of persons in the manu- 
facture of saddlery and coach -furniture in the 
mother country. They now buy tea by the chest, 
and sugar by the ton, for their large farm estab- 
lishment ; and the classes of merchants, ship- 
owners, and mariners, are on that account, as well 
as in consequence of their increased consumption of 
British goods, benefited to a much greater amonnt 
than they would have been by their remaining at 
home. 

" As a member of society, the capitalist of £200 
per annum, living in retirement in England, is of 
comparatively little weight in the scale. In New 
South Wales he becomes an important person. 

" As a father, the means of education for Iiis 
children are within his reach in the colony, and 
the walks of mercantile and professional exertion 
are open to his sons ; but he is relieved from aU 
anxiety as to their obtaining a comfortable subsist- 
ence in the world ; and can any person deny that 
the man of moderate capital who thus lives in the 
colony, does not much more usefully to the British 
nation, as well as to himself, to his family, and to 
society, than the man who merely vegetates oa 
£200 a-year in England." 

Mr. Cunningham, in his work, *'Twj Years in 



PORT PHILIP. 



169 



New South Wales," advises emigrants with small 
capital to unite in forming a settlement. He says, 
Three individuals arriving in the colony with 
^400 each, mustering thus a capital among them 
of £1200, would do a fourth more at least with 
this i-um than a single individual possessing such a 
capital of £1200 coz//^/, besides placing themselves 
in comfort in one third of the time, and saving 
eventually a large sum by the proceeding. Having 
myself experienced the benefit of this plan, I can 
speak with great confidence of its merits. In fact, 
in this way emigration may be successfully prac- 
tised by large bodies of individuals possessing small 
capitals, who could not at all attempt it single 
handed. Six individuals, for instance, with £100 
each in their pockets on arrival, w^illing and able 
to work, might soon form a comfortable asylum for 
themselves ; and even if they landed with £50 a- 
piece, might start decently. The requisites here 
are integrity, the preservation of a good under- 
standing among themselves, and a sufficiency of 
land at no great distance, one from the other, fit 
for farming purposes. This hint is worthy of the 
attention of persons inclining to emigrate; for be- 
sides the advantages which may arise from an 
union of efibrts, or the interchange of assistance 
with each other, there would be a pleasure in the 
enjoyment of the society of old acquaintance in tlie 
district selected for settlement.'* 

Military officers purchasing land according to 
the regulations established in tiie respective colonies, 
will, in proportion to their rank and services, be 
entitled to a remission of purchase-money accord- 
ing to the following graduated scale, on producing 
testimonials of unexceptionable character front the 
general commanding-in-chief, viz. : — 
I 



170 



AUSTRAIASIA. 



Field Officers of 25 ' years' service and upwards, in 

the whole . . £S0O 

" 20 years' service and upwards, in 

the whole . . 250 

" 15 years' service or less, in the 

whole . . 200 

Captains of 20 ye?j:s service and upwards, in " 
the whole . . 200 

" 15 years' service or less, in the 

whole . .150 

Subalterns of 20 years' service and upwards, in 

the whole , . 150 

" 7 years' service or less, in the 

whole . .100 

Xon-commissioned officers and soldiers desirous 
of settling in the colony are required to purchase 
land at tlie public sales, receiving a remission of 
the purchase -money in the following proportions : — 

Sergeants . . . £50 

Rank and File . . .25 

The advantages of emigration to New South 
Wales, if not numerous, are at least considerable. 

1. The interest of money lent on mortgage varies 
from 10 to I2i per cent., but the latter may, with- 
out much difficulty, be procured. 

2. The climate of New South Wales is far su- 
perior to the Canadas, and it is better adapted for 
wool, and many other productions. 

o. The settler has nothing to do with taxes, 
tithes^ poor-rates, or parish business of any kind — 
which at home occasion considerable uneasiness. 

4. Provisions of every description are plentiful 
aid extremely cheap. 

Since the colony was established in 17S8, a re- 
venue has been derived from the importation of 
tobacco and manufactures, as also from licenses; 
as the population and commerce of the colony iu- 



PORT PHILIP. 



171 



creased, so did the revenue. The increase wliich 
has taken place in the customs duties at Sydney 
is almost unprecedented; they now amount to about 
£200,000, while in 1822, they did not reach 
XlO,000. The following is an abstract of the pro- 
duce of the revenue of the colony of I^evv South 
Wales for one year : — 



Duties on spirits imported, . £130,038 


11 


0 


Duties on spirits distilled in the co- 








lony, 


1,286 


11 


0 


Duties on tobacco imported. 


22,739 


16 


3 


Ad valorem duty of 5 per cent, on 








foreign goods. 


10,507 


9 


2 


Wharfage, 


2,176 


15 


2 


Light -house duties. 


558 


10 


7 


Fees on the entrance and clearance 








of vessels. 


630 


17 


9 


Fees on the registration of vessels, 


879 


9 


0 


Permits to remove spirits, 


0 


0 


6 


Water supplied to shipping from the 








dock-yard. 


203 


9 


0 


Post-office collections, 


5,595 


19 


5 


Auction duties, 


4,820 


3 


11 


Licenses to auctioneers, 


66 


0 


0 


Ditto to distillers, 


75 


0 


0 


Ditto to retail spirituous and malt 








liquors, 

Rents of tolls, ferries, and market 


10,834 


0 


0 








dues, 


4,023 


4 


3 


Fees of public offices. 


6,800 


5 


5 


Ditto of courts of magistrates. 


1,208 
1,095 


10 


10 


Fines collected by the sheriff, . 


2 


0 


Ditto collected by the courts of ma- 








gistrates, . . 


2,436 


1 


51 


Proceeds of sale of live stock. 


32 


9 


5' 


Ditto of unclaimed property detained 








by the police. 


162 


0 


7 


Ditto of property found in the posses- 








sion of convicted felons. 


4,963 


15 


104 


Ditto of surplus and unserviceable 




stores, 


187 


7 


04 


Ditto of surplus provisions and stores 








landed from emigrant ships, 


981 


9 


2i 



172 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Collections by the agents for the estates 
of the late Church and School Cor- 



poration, 


11,930 17 


6| 


Rents of gardens, mills, and govern- 








ment premises, 


129 


9 


2 


Ditto of pews in churches, 


20 


14 


Q 
O 


Repaymefit of loans and sums refunded 


26 


10 


11 


Surcharges recovered. 


24 


13 


4 


Interest on debts to the crown, 


24 


3 


4 


Interest on public monies in colonial 








banks, . . . 


2,502 


1 


11 


Miscellaneous and incidental receipts, 


638 


13 


9 


£226,900 


3 lOJ 


Proceeds of land sold, 


120,427 


0 


5 


Quit-rents, 


1,560 


6 


7 


Redemption of quit-rents, 


784 


19 


2 


Rent of lands temporarily leased. 


874 13 


0 


Fees on the delivery of title-deeds, 


589 


2 


8 


Licenses to depasture live stock on 








crown lands. . 


3,680 


0 


0 




£127,866 


1 


10 


Total, 


£354,766 


5 


8 


While the expenditure of New South 






Wales for the same year was. 


£234,214 


0 


0 



Showing a surplus of income over ex- 
penditure of . . £ 120,556 5 8 



The commerce of New South Wales has become 
an object of great consideration to the mother 
country. The maritime trade of the colony is now 
about two millions and a half sterling ; whereas, a 
few years ago, it did not amount to half a million. 
The largest amount of the trade is carried on with 
Great Britain. The imports are spirits, wines, 
and beer, tea, groceries, and tobacco, salt provi- 
sions, cottons, linens, silks, and woollens, which 
amounted, in 1848, to £2,578,442, against 
£1,237,406 in 1837. The exports are wool, tim- 



POKT FUlLiP. 



173 



ber, flax, oil of all kinds, maize, hides, and ships' 
stores, amounting to £2,854,315, against <£784,624 
in 1837. The total tonnage inwards and outwards 
in 1848 was 694,904. 

After wool, whale oil is the chief staple of the 
colony; this article of commerce is, of recent 
creation, but its progress has been rapid. Upwards 
of forty vessels are eoiph)ye<l in this trade, amount- 
ing to 9655 tons, and carrying li79 men. The 
black whale is found in abundance along the coast 
of New South Wales, but those engaged in the 
fishing prefer cruising off the coast of New Zea- 
land, and among the beautiful islands in the Pacific, 
The sperm fishing is the most valuable however. 
The annual produce of the whale fishing amounts 
to about £150,000. 

The phormium tenax^ or New Zealand flax, is 
another article of export, yearly increasing in 
amount ; it is similar in appearance to the English 
flax. The outer part of the leaf is scraped off, the 
inner fibres or filaments, resembling dressed flax, 
are then sertt off to Sydney, where it is worth from 
£15 to £20 per ton. Timber, particularly cedar 
plank, has been for some time exported. 

After giving the revenue, &c. of New South 
Wales for the fourteen years ending 18 37, a late 
publication has the following : — The above has 
been submitted to two actuaries of eminence in 
London, in order to ascertain what the amount of 
each of these three heads of production would be in 
1851, being tiie end of another fourteen years. 
The results are as follow, viz. : — 

Revenue. Land Revenue. 

In 1824, £49,191 5 11 £279 17 9 
In 1837, 226,900 3 10 127,866 1 10 
In 1851, 1,046,606 58,391,835 



Exports of 

Wool. 
275,560 lbs. 
4,606,915 lbs. 
77,020,125 lbs. 



174 



AUSTRALASIA. 



''These calculations are given here to show the 
mighty resources of this magnificent and invaluable 
colony, and to demonstrate to all really industrious 
and right-minded persons the vast advantages which 
New South Wales offers them. It is not meant 
to deprecii^te other colonies, but it raay safely be 
affirmed, that the parallel of the rapid advancen^.ent 
of New Soutii Wales, and the boundless field for 
success which it offers to rightly directed industry 
and enterprise, is not to be found in the annals of 
mankind/' 

The whole of the .preceding statements demon- 
strate the rapid progress which New South Wales 
has made in population, wealth, and civilization ; 
and we are of opinion that the destinies of the 
colony are inconceivably high. 

We will conclude our account of New South 
Wales by the insertion of the following sketch from 
the New South Wales Calendar. 

In this important colonial possession, the rising 
up of towns and villages, and the erection of well 
proportioned pul)lic and private edifices, stand m 
proud attestation of a country's advancement. At 
the first settlement of the colony, the eye in every 
direction rested upon no ocher object than an inter- 
minable forest. Now the stranger beholds Sydney, 
the metropolis of Australia, with no small surprise ; 
the regularity of the streets, and the elegance of the 
buildings, being beyond his most sanguine expecta- 
tions. 

A proof of the country's progression consists 
in the appointment of the mails, and the quick and 
secure transmission of letters by post. Settlers in 
distant parts of the interior are now supplied with 
their letters and newspapeis at a fixed rate, and 
at stated periods, and the inhabitants of Sydney 
with the foruier twice every day, with the excep- 



FORT PUT LI F. 



175 



tion of Sunday. Stage-coaches also run regularly 
between the metropolis and some of the towns in 
the interior, while, for the accommodation of the 
good citizens of the capital, hackney-coaches have 
been started. Between the ports of Sydney and 
Newcastle several vessels are regularly trading, 
while others speed their way to Van Dieman's 
Land and New Zealand on varied objects of com- 
merce. Nor are these the only means of inter- 
course, by water; steam vessels, those rapid vehicles 
of communication, which Great Britain and Ame- 
rica shoot forth to different countries of the nor- 
thern hemisphere, now ply upon our southern 
waves. Two of these make their weekly trip, on 
different days, from Sydney to Newcastle, a town 
on the mouth of the Hunter, and on to the Green 
Hills, near Maitland, thirty- eight miles up the 
river. By this means the settlers in these rich and 
extensive districts have the accommodation of 
making choice of the opportunities, without regard 
to wind and tide, of proceeding to and from Sydney 
within a week, of shipping the produce of their 
farms for the market, and bringing back goods in 
return. 

Another mark of the progress of cultivation 
and march of intellect, will be found to consist in 
the publication of newspapers, and other periodical 
works ; of the former, there are at present six in 
the colony, besides the Government Gazettes ; in 
addition to these, we have the Australian Alma- 
nack^ an annual which contains much useful infor- 
mation for the colonist."* 

A great improvement is daily taking place in 
the outward condition of the several ranks of so- 

* A railway from Sydney to Goulburn, a distance of 
120 miles, is now in course of construction. 



176 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ciety. While the climate is decidedly good, and 
where but little disease predominates, which, with 
care and attention, may be generally avoided or 
repelled) the sick from accident or from causes un- 
connected vvith climate, the helpless and the infirm, 
have the benefit of the Hospital, the Dispensary, 
and Benevolent Asylum. For the moral welfare 
of the community there are various societies. For 
the general reader there are a subscription library 
and two circulating libraries ; for the scientific, 
lectures in natural philosophy, chemistry, &c., and 
a museum, which must ere long rise into import- 
ance, as the public receptacle for the innumerable 
wonders of the animal, vegetable, and mineral 
kingdoms of this great southern land. Astronomy 
possesses her votary at the observatory in Para- 
matta, while the lovers of Flora may range at plea- 
sure through the walks of the Botanical Garden, 
and drives in the government domain in Sydney ; 
and the admirers of aorriculture and horticulture 
attend the annual meetings of the society, and wit- 
ness the awarding of the medals to the successful 
candidates for the several premiums for colonial 
produce and stock. The amateur of the course 
can boast his turf, racing, and jockey clubs. The 
lover of drollery and fun, his ''Levy at Home;" 
the man of merchandise, his Australian Society,'' 
his " Chamber of Commerce," and "Marine In- 
surance Company.'' And while the man of wealth 
rejoices in his shares in the larger, the prudent and 
thrifty avail themselves of a safe depository for 
their savings in the lesser bank. Inventions of 
difi'erent kinds from the mother country are con- 
stantly multiplying. 

As a consequence of this improvement in the 
physical circumstances of the people, population 
has, within these few years, been on the increase. 



PORT PHILIP. 



17T 



A great change for the hetter also has been gra- 
dually taking place in the quality of every descrip- 
tion of stock. No country can be more favourable 
for breeding good horses than this. The mildness 
of the climate, the abundance of natural grasses, 
and the extensive runs through endless woods, and 
over the finest downs, tend in no slight degree 
to their improvement. We have at the present 
time most excellent breeds, of different kinds, im- 
ported from England and India, both for saddle 
and draught, and their number exceeds the de- 
mand for them. Here, too, they are subject to 
very few diseases, and live to a great age. 

From the same advantages of climate and pas- 
ture, horned cattle also thrive well in this colony. 
Of the Devonshire, Suffolk, Durham, and Ayr- 
shire breeds, very many have been imported. The 
supply of milk, butter, and cheese is generally 
abundant. The beef is excellent and plentiful, and, 
consequently, cheap, and must continue so as long 
as the increase of animal food exceeds the consump- 
tion ; many, however, of our superabundant cattle 
will be drained from our herds, now that our salted 
beef, some of which, having been well tried, has 
been pronounced of very superior quality, is made 
to supply our whalers, and is becoming a valuable 
export from our shores. 

" As it regards sheep, our colonial wool has of 
late wonderfully improved, and is now equal, or 
superior, in many flocks, to the fleece of any other 
country. Good confidential shepherds, however, 
are much wanted. Were the sheep fiirms supplied 
with such, the quantity of wool w^ould be greatly 
increased, as the lives of many valuable sheep 
would be annually saved to the wool-grower. 

Many thousand acres of our territory are now 
under cultivation in wheat and maize. On tliis 
I 2 



ITS 



AUSTRALASIA. 



side of the Blue Mountains the soil and climate are 
not generally favourable to the growth of the for- 
mer, but are particularly adapted to that of the 
latter. To the westward of the mountains, and in 
the county of Argyle, wheat flourishes well, the 
crops are abundant, and the grain of the very best 
quality. 

" The cultivation of tobacco is rapidly increasing 
in the colony, and very excellent snuff is manu- 
factured in Sydney from its produce. The climate 
appears also to be well adapted to the growth of 
the hop, and of cotton and flax. 

" As regards vegetables, these of every descrip- 
tion flourish in our gardens, while fruit-trees of all 
kinds, such as oranges, peaches, apples, pears, &c. 
are very productive amorigst us. The olive pro- 
mises well, and every year adds something new to 
the present productions, in the shape of seeds and 
fruit-trees imported from Europe, South America, 
and India. 

Considered in a mineral ogical and geological 
point of view, this country is by no means deficient 
in interest ; but, on the contrary, is daily ad - 
vancing in importance. The quantity and quality 
of the coal, worked by the Australian Agricultural 
Company at Newcastle, will be not only a source 
of increasing value to the resident in Sydney, where 
the purchase of fi.re-wood, which must now be 
brought from a considerable distance into the capi- 
tal, is attended with so much expense; but must 
also be an article of export. Some of the best 
kinds of iron are to be' met with in the colony ; 
and from the recent discovery, by the writer of this 
sketch, in the neighbourhood of the Liverpool 
range, of native copper, coating the rounded sur- 
faces of agate and cornelian, it may be presumed 
that the riches of this mineral will one day be ex- 



PORT pniLIP. 



179 



tracted from the bowels of our mountains, and be 
made to be of t;o trifling importance in the manu- 
factures of the country. Here, in tins new land^ 
the geologist observes the general accordance of the 
inclination and alternation of tlie several strata with 
that of other countries on the face of the earth, and 
discovers organic remains in localities similar to 
these, where they are known to predominate in 
the old world. 

Of the various descriptions of emigrants, the 
following are much wanted amongst us, and, if 
sober and industrious, may calculate upon obtaining 
full employment and good wages, namely, brick- 
makers and brick-layers, stone-masons and plas- 
terers, ship and house carpenters, coopers and 
wheelwrights, painters and glaziers, cabinet-makers 
and blacksmiths. And as the disproportion be- 
tween the sexes cannot but be considered one of 
the most serious evils in the social condition of the 
colony, the emigration hither of unmarried females 
of good character in the bumble walks of life (and 
many such have already arrived amongst us) must 
be attended with very beneficial results to the com- 
munity at large. 

Disappointments, however, many and grievous, 
have been experienced by settlers on their arrival, 
especially by the emigrant pensioners of the army 
and artillery ; as a preventive against any similar 
misfortunes for the future, a society, which is called 
' The Emigrant's Friend Society,' has been formed 
in Sydney, the especial objeet of which is, as ves- 
sels arrive successively m our harbour, to direct 
the strangers on our shores how to procure employ- 
ment, and thereby prevent them from spending, 
to no available purpose, the little they possess, and 
from being foiled in the hopes which induced them 
to quit tiieir native land. 



180 



AUSTRALASIA. 



''The permanent welfare of all classes in our 
community must doubtless depend upon a due pro- 
portion of emigrant capitalists and emigrant la- 
bourers, respectively, arriving amongst us. The 
system of making grants of land being now abo- 
lished, the former may purchase land of the govern- 
ment at the minimum price, or may rent land at a 
yearly lease of 3s. lid, per 100 acres ; and as there 
are millions of acres in the colony still unoccupied, 
we invite to our shores individuals of this descrip- 
tion, bidding them bear in mind the great advan- 
tages they will here enjoy in having on their farms 
the aid of convict labour — Qhat advantage is now 
lost to the colony J — so much cheaper than that of 
free servants, assuring them that, if they will only 
take care that the servants assigned to them by the 
government be well treated, well fed, and well 
clothed, they will be as safe on their lands, in the 
midst of the hond^ as they would be in England 
surrounded by the free. 

Such then, we repeat it, is the present state of 
Australia — such her standing amongst the colonies 
of Great Britain ; and, blest beneath the sway of a 
ruler whose study is the people's welfare, she can- 
not but continue to increase in wealth and import- 
ance, until, at no distant period, she shall obtain 
that great political boon from the mother country 
— a legislative assembly — and rise proudly pre- 
eminent, happy, and independent, amidst the na- 
tions of the earth.'* 

She has obtained that much desired boon, which 
was granted during the Jast session of the British 
Parliament. The queen, in her speech at the pro- 
rogation of Parliament, says, respecting this mea- 
sure — The acts for the better government of my 
Australian colonies will, I trust, improve the con- 
dition of these rising colonies. It will always be 



VAN DIEMAN's land. 



181 



gratifying to me to be able to extend the advan- 
tages of representative constitutions, which forward 
the glory and happiness of my people, to colonies 
inhabited by men who are capable of exercising, 
with benefit to themselves, the privileges of free- 
dom." 



VAN DIEMAN'S LAND. 



Van Dii^:man's Land is situated on the south-east 
coast of New Holland, from which it is separated 
by Bass's Straits, between the parallels of 41 deg. 
20 min. and 43 deg. 40 min. south, and the meri- 
dian of 140 deg. 40 min. and 148 deg. 20 min. 
east. It is of an irregular heart- shape ; and its 
greatest extent, from north to south, is estimated 
at 210 miles, and from east to west 150 miles. It 
contains 27,000 square miles, or 15,000,000 acres, 
having a surface about equal to the size of Ireland. 

This island was first discovered in 1633, by Tas- 
man, the Dutch navigator ; and it was in honour 
of the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies, 
Anthony Van Dieman, that the island received its 
name ; its occasional name,of Tasmania is a tribute 
to its first disjoverer, Tasman, who first visited 
the coast in an eastward voyage from Mauritius ; 
but it was not for more than 130 years that the 
knowledge of its existence was followed by any 
event of the slightest importance. Captain Cook 



182 



AUSTHALASI^. 



and his companion. Captain Turncaut. in the course 
of their voyage of circuranavisation, visited the 
shores of Van Dieman's Land, and it was subse- 
sequently visited by Captain Cuok in 1777^ 
without discovering: its insularity. It was like- 
wise visited by D'Entreeasteaux, who traced the 
channel which now bears his name. It was still 
believed, however, to be a part of the continent of 
Xew Holland ; nor was it until Bass, in 1798, in 
an open boat, passed through the straits which are 
named after him. that its insular character was 
established. The honour of the discovery belongs 
to the Dutch ; but the survey of it has been effected 
principally by the English. 

It was formally taken possession of by the Eng- 
lish in 1S04. when a small detachment, under the 
command of Lieutenant Bowen, arrived from Syd- 
ney, for the purpose of forming a penal settlement 
for convicts transported from that colony. Risdon, 
or, as it is sometimes called, Restdown, on the 
banks of the Derwent, a few miles up the river, 
was the spot selected for the settlement ; but at 
that time little was effected beyond this. 

Early in 1804, Lieutenant-Governor Collins, 
who had recently left England with a considerable 
expedition, with, the intention of forming a settle- 
ment on the sr.utli east coast of Xew Holland, at 
Port Philip, altered his destination after a short 
experience of the difficulties attending a settlement 
at that place, and arrived in the River Derwent, 
when the island was formally taken possession of 
in His Majesty's name,, and after various surveys 
of both banks of the Derwent, the present site of 
Hobart Town was decided upon for head- quarters. 
The name was bestowed in complim.ent to Lord 
Hobart. at that time Secretary of State for the 
colonies. Lieutenant-Governor Collins had about 



VA-NT DTEMAN's land. 



183 



400 convicts under bis charge, with about fifty 
niarliies to guard them. Such was the first esta- 
lishment of Vaa Dieman's Land as a penal settle- 
ment. 

The colony at times suffered the greatest hard- 
ships. For the first three years, the inhabitants 
being entirely dependent upon foreign supplies for 
the most common articles of food, were reduced to 
great straits ; so much so, that we read of Is. 6d. 
having been given for a pound of Kangaroo flesh, 
and that sea- weed, or aoy other vegetable sub^ 
stance at all fit for food, was purchased at an 
equally exorbitant price. 

Sheep and cattle were not introduced for about 
three years after the island had been settled. Un- 
til 1813, Yan Dieman's Land was a place of trans- 
portation for convicted felons from New South 
Wales, and all communication with other places 
than England and New South Wales prohibited. 
Emigration commenced in 1821 ; from that time 
the colony has been in a state of rapid increase, as 
will be seen by its statistics. 

hen first discovered, Yan Dieman's Land was 
densely peopled by a dark race of inhabitants, dif- 
fering somewhat from the natives of New Holland, 
in the more negro-like caste of countenance, woolly 
hair, and darker colour. The aborigines of this 
country v/ere, if possible, still more barbarous and 
uncivilized than those of the adjacent coast. They 
subsisted entirely by hunting, and had no know- 
ledge whatever of the art of fishing. Even the 
rude bark canoe which their neighbours possessed 
w^as quite unknown to them, and whenever they 
had to pass any sheet of water, they were com- 
pelled to construct a wretched raft for the occasion. 
Their arms and hunting implements also indicated 
an inferior degree of civilization. The womera, or 



184 



AUSTRALASIA. 



throwing- stick, which enables the natives of New 
South Wales to cast their spears with such amazing 
force and precision, was not used by them. Their 
spears, too, instead of being made with the bulrush, 
and only pointed with hard wood, were composed 
entirely of it, and were consequently more ponder- 
ous. In using them they grasped the centre, but 
they neither threw them so far nor so dexterously 
as the natives of the opposite coast. This circum- 
stance was the more fortunate, as they long main- 
tained the most rancorous and inflexible hatred and 
hostility towards the white settlers. This deep- 
rooted enmity, however, did not arise so much from 
the ferocious nature of the savages, as from the in- 
considerate and unjustifiable conduct of our country- 
men, shortly after the foundation of the settlement 
on the River Derwent. At first the natives evinced 
the most friendly disposition towards the new 
comers, and w'ould probably have continued to 
have been actuated by the same feeling, had not 
the military officer entrusted with the command 
directed a discharge of grape and canister to be 
made among a large body, who were approaching, 
as he imagined, with hostile designs; but, as it has 
since been believed, with much greater probability, 
merely from motives of curiosity and friendship. 
The havoc occasioned among them by this murder- 
ous discharge w^as dreadful. Immediately all com- 
munication ceased, and the spirit of animosity 
w^hich this unmerited and atrocious act of barbarity 
engendered, was fostered and aggravated to the 
highest pitch, by the numerous rencontres that 
subsequently took place between them and the 
colonists. Whenever an opportunity offered, they 
destroyed as many of their enemies as they could, 
while the colonists, in their turn, never let slip an 
opportunity of retaliating on their blood-thirsty 



VAN DIEMAN's land. 



385 



neiglibours. Fortunately, however, for the colonists, 
they were seldom known to act on the offensive, 
except when they happened to meet some of their 
y)ersecutors singly. Two persons armed with mus- 
quets might traverse the island from one end to 
the other in the most perfect safety. These con- 
tests, however, continued till within the last twelve 
or fifteen years, when a general levy of the white 
colonists took place. The aborigii^s were hemmed 
into one corner of the island, and finally removed, 
under the protection of the British government, 
to Flinders Island, in Bass's Straits. Their num- 
bers, however, were very much diminished ; small- 
pox, famine, and the retaliation of the colonists for 
the murders of their relations and friends had re- 
duced them to about 150. 

The poor natives were not the only enemies the 
colonists had to contend with. Mr. Wentwortb, a 
native of the colony, writing in 1819, says — " These 
settlements are in a very bad state of defence, having 
but two companies of troops for the garrison and 
protection of them both. They have consequently 
been infested for a number of years past by a ban- 
ditti of runaway convicts who have endangered the 
persons and property of every one that has evinced 
himself hostile to their enormities. These wretches, 
who are known in the colony by the name of 
Bush-rangers, went so far as to write threatening 
letters to the Lieutenant-Governor and the magis- 
tracy. In this horrible state of anarchy, a simul- 
taneous feeling of insecurity and dread naturally 
pervaded the whole of the inhabitants ; and the 
most respectable part of the agricultural body, with 
one accord, betook themselves to the towns, as the 
only means of preserving their lives, gladly aban- 
doning their property, to prevent the mucli greater 
sacrifice with which the defence of it would have 



186 



AUSTRALASIA. 



been attended. There is no species of outrage and 
atrocity in which these maurauders did not indulge. 
Murders, incendiaries, and robheries were their ordi- 
nary amusements, and have been, for many years 
past, the leading events in the annals of these un- 
fortunate settleuients. Every measure that could 
be devised was taken for the capture and punish- 
ment of these wretches. They were repeatedly 
outlawed, and t^e most alluring rewards were set 
upon their heads ; but the insufficiency of the 
military force, the extent of the island, their supe- 
rior local knowledge, and the abundance of game, 
which enabled them to find an easy subsistence, 
and rendered them independent, except for an occa- 
sional supply of ammunition, with which some 
unknown persons w^ere base enough to furnish 
them, in exchange for their ill acquired booty; all 
these circumstances conspired to baffie, for many 
years, every attempt that was made for their ap- 
prehension. This long impunity served only to 
increase their cruelty and temerity ; and it was at 
last deemed expedient by Lieutenant-Governor 
Davy to declare the whole island under the opera- 
tion of martial law. This vigorous exertion of 
authority was zealou>ly seconded by the respectable 
inhabitants, many of whom joined the military in 
the pursuit of the miscreants, and fortunately suc- 
ceeded, by their joint exertions, in apprehending 
the most daring of their ringleaders, who were 
instantly tried by a court-martial, and hanged in 
chains. This terrible, though necessary exnmple, 
was followed by a proclamation, offering a general 
amnesty to all the delinquents who should sur- 
render themselves before a certain day ; excepting, 
however, such of them as had been guilty of mur- 
der. The proclamation had the desired effect. AH 
who were not excluded by their crimes availed 



VAN DIEMAn's land. 



187 



tlioinselves of the pardon thus afforded them. But 
strange to say, they were allowed to rejiiaiii in 
the island ; and whether they were enamoured 
of the licentious life they had been so loner leading, 
or whether they distrusted tlie sincerity of the 
oblivion promised them, and became apprehensive 
of eventual punishment, in a few months afterwards 
they again betook tliemselves to the woods, and 
rejoined those who had been excluded from the 
amnesty. After this they rivalled their former 
atrocities, and a general feeling of consternation 
was excited among the well-disposed part of the 
connn unity.' And here, as it may not he uninte- 
resting to many of my readers to he acquainted 
with some of the specific outrages of these monsters, 
I subjoin the following extracts from the Sydney 
Gazette of tlie 25th January, 1817. 

" 'The accounts of robberies coniinitted by t'le 
banditti of bush-rangers in Van Dieman's Land, 
presents a melancholy picture of the distress to 
which the more respectable classes of inha!)itants 
are constantly exposed, from the daring acts of 
those infcimous marauders, who are divided into 
small parties, and are designated by the principal 
ruffian at their head, of Vv'hom one Michael Howe 
appears to be the most alert in depredation. Tlie 
accounts received by the Kangaroo^ ■\\\\\^\\ com- 
mence from the beginning of November,* state that 
on th@ 7th of that month, the house and premises 
of Mr. David Rose, at Port Dalrymple, were at- 
tacked and plundered of considerable property, 
by Peter Sefton and his gang. The delinquents 
were pursued by the commandant at the head of a 
strong detachment ; but returned, after a five days* 
hunt, without being able to discover the villains. 

'On the niglit of the 17th of Novemlier, the 
premises of Mr. Thomas Hayes, at Bagdad, weie 



188 



AUSTRALASIA. 



attacked, at a time when jlr. Stocker and his wife 
(on their route from Hobart Town to Port Dal- 
rymple, with a cart containing a large and valuable 
property), and Mr. Andrew Whitehead, had un- 
fortunately put up at the house for the night. 
Michael Howe was the chief of this banditti, which 
consisted of eight others. The property of which 
they plundered jlr. and Mrs. Stocker was upwards 
of £300 value, among which were two kegs of 
spirits, one of these they wantonly wasted, by 
firing a pistol-ball through the head of the keg, 
which contained eleven gallons. They set their 
watches by Mr. Whitehead's, which 'they after- 
wards returned, but took 31r. Stocker s away with 
their other plunder.'' ' 

[[The same paper contains a numerous list of 
atrocities committed by these outlaws, which we 
omit. J Mr. Yv^ent worth continues — 

'•All the outrages above enumerated, it will be 
seen, were perpetrated within the short period of 
two days ; and these settlements continued the 
scene of similar enormities, until the July follow- 
ing, an interval of nearly eight months. On the 
serious injury which the industrious of all classes 
must have experienced in that time, it would be 
useless here to dilate. It must be evident that 
such extremes of anarchy could not be of any long 
duration ;*and that one or other of these two events 
became inevitable, either that the exertions and 
enterprise of the colonists should be brought to a 
stand, or that these disturbers of the general tran- 
quillity should sutfer condign punishment. For- 
tunately the cause of public justice triumphed, and 
the majority of these monsters fell victims, either 
to common distrust, or to the violated laws of their 
country. And here, after detailing some few of 
their escapes, I cannot refrain from giving, in turn. 



VAN bieman's Land. 



189 



the account of the measures that led to their dis- 
comfiture and apprehension, as extracted from the 
Sydney Gazette of the 4th of September, 1817. 

A meeting of public officers, and principal 
inhabitants, and settlers was convened at Hdbart 
Town, by sanction of his honour Lieutenant- 
governor Sorrel, on the 5th of July, for the pur- 
pose of considering the most effectual measures 
for suppressing the banditti; when the utmost 
alacrity manifested itself to support the views of 
the government in promoting that desirable object; 
and a liberal subscription was immediately entered 
into for that purpose. The following proclama- 
tion was immediately afterwards issued by the 
Lieutenant-governor : — 

" ' Whereas the armed banditti, who have for a 
considerable time infested the interior of this island, 
did, on the 10th ultimo, make an attack upon the 
store at George Town, which, being left unprotect- 
ed, they plundered ; taking away two boats, which 
they afterwards cast ashore at the entrance of Port 
Dalrymple : and whereas the principal leader ia 
the outrages which have been committed by this 
band of robbers, is Peter Geary, a deserter from 
his Majesty's 73rd regiment, charged also with 
murder, and various other offences : and whereas 
the undermentioned offenders have beeif concerned, 
with the said Peter Geary, in most of these enor- 
mities ; the following rewards will be paid to any 
person, or persons, who shall apprehend these 
offenders, or any of them : — Peter Geary, one 
hundred guineas: Peter Septon, John Jones, 
Richard Collyer, eighty guineas each ; Thomas 
Coine, Brown or Erune, a Frenchman, fifty 
guineas each. 

' And whereas George Watts, a prisoner, who 



190 



AUSTRALASIA. 



absented himself from tbe Coal River preTioos to 
the expiration of bis sentence, and who stands 
charged with Tarious robberies and crimes, is now 
at large : it is hereby declared that a reward of 
eighty guineas will be paid to any person or per- 
sons who shall appreheiid the said George Watts. 

" ^ And all magistrates, and commanders of 
military stations and parties, and ail constables, 
and others of his Majesty's subjects, are enjoined 
to use their utmost efforts to apprehend the crimi- 
nals above named/ 

" The gang of bush-rangers appeared in the 
vicinity of Black Brush on Saturday, and were 
tracked by Serjeant McCarthy, of the 46th, with 
his party, on the following morning. On Monday 
they were at the house at Tea-tree Brush, where 
they dined ; and about three o'clock Serjeant 
McCarthy and his party came up. The bush- 
rangers ran out of the house into the woods, and 
being eleven in number, and well covered by tim- 
ber and ground, the eight soldiers could not cl(^ 
with them. After a good deal of firing, Geary, 
the leader, was wounded, and fell ; two others 
were also wounded. The knapsacks of the whole 
and their dogs were taken. Geary died the same 
night, and his corpse was brought into town on 
Tuesday, ^ were the two w^ounded men. 

The remaining eight bu^ih-rangers were seen 
in the vicinity of the Coal River on Wednesday ; 
but, as they must have been destitute of provisions 
and ammunition, sanguine hopes were entertained 
of their speed}' fall. 

" Dennis Currie and Matthew Riegan, two of 
the original bush-i:angers5 surrendered on the ^^ion- 
day following. 

" On Wednesday an inquest was held on tbe 



VAN DIEMA'n's land. 



191 



body of Geary, who died of the wound received 
in the affair at Tea-tree Brush. Yerdict — Hoaii- 
cide, in the furtherance of public justice. 

Jones, a principal of the banditti, was shot in 
the beginning of August, in the neighbourhood of 
Swanport. For some days they had not been 
beard of ; but by the extraordinary exertions of 
Serjeant McCarthy and his party, were tracked 
and overtaken at the above place ; on which occa- 
sion Jones was killed on the spot, by a ball through 
the head. 

" On the Sunday evening after the above alFair, 
some of the villains effected a robbery at Clarence 
Plains ; but became so excessively intemperate, 
from intoxication, as to quarrel among themselves ; 
the consequence was, that another of the gang, of 
the name of RoUards, having been most severely 
bruised and beaten by his associates, fell into the 
hands of a settler, and was by him taken a prisoner 
into Hobart Town. White and Johnson, two 
others of the gang, w^ere apprehended by Serjeant 
M'Carthy's party, on Thursday, the 14th August, 
being conducted to their haunts by a native woman, 
distinguished by the name of Black Mary, and 
another girl. 

After the above successes in reducing the 
number of these persons, some of them still con- 
tinned out on the 16th of August, as af^)ears from 
a report published : of the old bush-rangers, 
Septon, Collyer, Coine, and Brune, also Watts, 
who kept separate from the rest, and Michael 
Howe, who had before delivered himself up, but 
took again to the woods. 

By the Gth of September, nearly the whole of 
the absentees, of whatever description, had either 
surrendered or been apprehended ; and upon this 
day, a proclamation was issued, offering the foi- 



192 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Jowing rewards : — for tlie apprehension of Michael 
Howe, one hundred guineas ; for George Watts, 
eighty guineas; and for Brune, the Frenchman, 
fifty guineas ; and in consequence of these prompt 
and efficacious arrangements, additional captures 
had been made, which placed it nearly beyond a 
doubt that Howe is almost if not the only indivi- 
dual of the desperate gangs now at large." 

" This latter assertion, however, (says Mr. 
Wentworth,) does not appear to have been cor- 
rect ; for in a Sydney Gazette of the 25th October, 
we have the following account of the apprehension 
and surrender of some others of this banditti, and 
of an unsuccessful attempt to take Michael Howe, 
which will tend to elucidate the desperate character 
of this ruffian : — 

" ' Several witnesses have arrived, as witnesses 
on the prosecution of offenders transmitted for 
trial ; two of whom are charged with wilful mur- 
der : viz., Richard Collyer, as a principal in the 
atrocious murder of the late William Carlisle and 
James O'Berne; the other prisoner for murder is 
John Hilliard, who was only one of the banditti of 
bush-rangers, but being desirous of giving himself 
up, determined previously, by force or guile, to 
achieve some exploit, that might place the sincerity 
of his contrition beyond doubt. Accident soon 
brought the above Collyer, together with Peter 
Septon, another of the banditti, within his power. 
He attacked and killed Septon, and wounded Col- 
lyer, wdio nevertheless got away, but was soon 
apprehended. It is for the killing of Septon he 
is therefore to be tried. Another of the late ban- 
ditti, George Wajits, is come up also, but under no 
criminal charge, as we are informed, he having 
been desperately wounded, by Michael Howe, in 



VAN DIEMAn's land. 



193 



an attempt, assisted by William Drew, to take 
him into Hobart Town a prisoner ; but in which 
exertion Drew was shot dead, by that desperate 
offender, and Watts nearly killed also.' 

I have been thus copious in extracts from the 
Sydney Gazette, to show the lamentable state of 
danger and anarchy in which the colonists of Yan 
Dieman's Land have been kept by an inconsider- 
able banditti, who, from the imbecility of the local 
government, have been enabled to continue for 
many years a triumphant career of violence and 
impunity. This iniquitous and formidable associa- 
tion may, indeed, be considered as crushed for the 
moment, although the most desperate member of 
it is still at large. But what pledge have the well 
disposed part of the inhabitants that a band, equally 
atrocious, will not again spring up? What guaran- 
tee, in fact, have they that this very ruffian,^ the 
sole centre of the late combination, will not serve 
as a rallying point to the profligate, and again col- 
lect around him a circle of robbers and murderers, 
as desperate and bloody as the miscreants who 
have been annihilated ? And can the pursuits of 
industry quietly proceed under the harassing dread 
which this constant liability to outrage and depre- 
dation must inspire ? There is no principle less 
controvertible, than that the subject has the 
same claims on the government for support and 
protection, as they have on him for obedience and 
fidelity. The compact is as binding on the one 
party as on the other ; and it is really dis- 
creditable to the established character of this 
country that any part of its dominions should have 

* The best of all guarantees — his death. He was killed 
by three of his associates. 
K . 



194 



AUSTRALASIA. 



continued for so long a period the ?cene of sncb 
flagrant enormities, merely from the want of a 
sufficient military force to insure the due adminis- 
tration of the laws, and to maintain the public 
tranquillity/' 

The general aspect of the interior of Van Die- 
man's Land is very diversified, but decidedly 
mountainous, not, howei/er, in ranges, but rather 
in isolated peaks, varied by lofty table land and 
extensive fertile valleys or plains. 

In this island, as in New Holland, there is every 
diversity of soil, but certainly, in proportion to the 
extent of surface of the two countries, Yan Die- 
man s Land contains, comparatively, much less of 
an indiiferent qualitj. Large tracts of land, per- 
fectly free from timber or underwood, and covered 
v^ith the most luxuriant herbage, are to be found 
in all directions, but more particularly, in the 
neighbourhood of Port Dalrymple. This sort of 
land is invariably of the best description, and much 
of it remains unappropriated, which is capable of 
being immediately converted to all the purposes 
of husbandry. There the colonist has no expense 
to incur in clearing his farm ; he is not compelled 
to a great preliminary outlay of capital before he 
can expect any considerable return ; he has only 
to set fire to the grass, to prepare his land for the 
reception of the ploughshare ; so that, if he but 
possess a good team of horses or oxen, with a set 
of harness, and a couple of substantial ploughs, he 
has the main requisites for commencing an agri- 
cultural establishment, and for insuring a complete 
subsistence for himself and family. 

To this great superiority which Van Dieman's 
Land may justly claim over the parent colony, may 
be superadded two other items, wdiich are perhaps 
of equal importance. First, the rivers here have 



VAN DIEMAN'S land. 



195 



sufficient fall in them to prevent any excessive ac- 
cumulation of water from violent or continued rain ; 
and, consequently, free from destructive inunda- 
tions. Here, therefore, the colonist may settle 
on the banks of a navigable river, and enjoy all 
the advantages of sending his produce to market 
by water, without running the constant hazard of 
having the fruits of his labour, the golden promise 
of the year, swept away in an hour by a capricious 
and domineering element. Secondly, the seasons 
are more regular and defined, and those great 
droughts, which occur every ten or twelve years 
in New South Wales, are altogether unknown. In 
those years when the whole face of the country in 
New Holland was literally burnt up, and vegeta- 
tion completely at a stand still for want of rain, an 
abundant supply of it fell here, and the harvests in 
consequence were never more productive. Indeed, 
since the settlements . were first established, the 
crops have never sustained any serious detriment 
from an insufficiency of rain ; whereas, in the pa- 
rent colony, there have been, since its foundation, 
many dearths occasioned by droughts. 

The circumstance, therefore, of this island being 
thus exempt from those calamitous consequences 
which are so frequent in New Holland from a de- 
ficiency of rain, is a most important point of consi- 
deration for all such as hesitate in their choice 
between the two countries, and is well worthy the 
most serious attention of those who are desirous of 
emigrating to one or the other of them, with a 
view to* become mere agriculturists. 

The climate of this island is equally healthy and 
much more congenial to the European constitution 
than that of New Holland. The north-west 
winds, which are those productive of such violent 
variations of temperature, are here unknown : 



190 



AUSTRALASIA. 



and Deitlier the summers nor winters are pnliject to 
any great extremes of heat or cold. The frosts, 
indeed, are much more severe, and of mnch h)nger 
diiratior5 ; and the mountains, with v;hich the 
island abounds, are coTered with snow during the 
greater part of the year ; but in the valleys it 
never lingers more than a few hours. Upon an 
average, the mean difference of temperature, be- 
tween these settlements and tho?e of New Holland, 
to the eastward of the Blue Mountains, may be 
estimated at ten degrees of Fahrenheit at all sea- 
sons of the year. The country to the westward of 
the Blue Mountains, as has been already stated, is 
equally cold with any part of Yan Dieman'9 Land. 

The spring months are September, October, and 
November, when the weather is usually bright and 
clear, with occasional rain and high wind. The 
thermometer for these months averages from fifty 
to sixty degrees. 

December, January, and February are the sum- 
mer months. Very little rain falls, in general, 
during these three months. The productions of 
the earth, such as grass, corn, and vegetables, 
ripen about one month earlier than the sam3 kinds 
■would in England, that is in December, which 
answers to our June; products are gathered which 
in England arrive at maturity in July. 

March, April, and May are the autumn months, 
and form by far its pleasantest season. The air is 
then clear and bright, the sky free from clouds and 
vapours ; the medium heat of the day is about 
sixty-five degrees, and the nights are cool and 
refreshing. Even in the warmest weather, the 
evenings and nights are cool in Yan Dieman's 
Land. 

The winter months are June, July, and August. 
In the interior, particularly upon high and exposed 



VAN DIEMAN's land. 



197 



situations, frosts are sometimes severe, and at 
times a good deal of snovy falls ; but it is seldom 
that the sun so entirely loses its power as to suffer 
an appearance of either frost or snow to continue 
tlirouo;hout the day ; and the winter is rather con- 
templated by the inhabitants as a season of mode- 
rate and genial rain, sufficient to replenish the 
storehouses of the earth against the ensuing spring, 
and facilitate the labours of the husbandman, than 
as the cold and dismal season of the higher lati- 
tudes. The thermometer ranges, upon an average, 
from forty to forty-eight degrees ; now and then, 
however, for a few days, some degrees lower. 
The longest day in Yan Dieman's Land is fifteen 
hours twelve minutes ; the shortest day, eight 
hours forty-eight minutes. 

In the system of agriculture pursued in the two 
colonies there is no difference, save that maize is 
not cultivated here, the climate being rather cold 
to bring this grain to maturity. Barley and oats, 
however, arrive at much greater perfection, and 
afford the inhabitants a substitute, although by no 
means an equivalent for this highly valuable pro- 
duct. The wheat which is raised here is of much 
superior quality to the wheat grown in New South 
Wales, and commands in the Sydney market a 
difference of price sufficiently great to pay for the 
cost of transport Yan Dieman's Land wheat is 
not subject to the weevil, and generally yields from 
sixty to sixty five pounds per bushel. Potatoes, 
peas, beans, and turnips are also abundantly raised 
here. The potatoes are equal to any on the globe, 
and will keep through the whole year. Advices 
from Yan Dieman's Land, of January 19, 1850, 
state that cotton planting was likely to become 
popular. A frost had injured the previous crop, 
but it was abundantly proved that, with ordinary 



198 



AUSTRALASIA. 



care, cotton could be grown. This, at least, vroiild 
be hailed as a blessing by the mother couDtry, 
which is at present wholly dependent on foreiga 
nations for the supply of that valuable article. 

These settlements do not contain either such a 
variety or abundance of fruit as New South Wales. 
The superior coldness of their climate sufficiently 
accounts for the former deficiency, and the o^reater 
recency of their establishment for the latter. The 
orange, citron, guava, loquat, pomegranate, and 
many other fruits, which attain tlie greatest per- 
fection in the parent colony, cannot be produced 
liere at all, without having recourse to artificial 
means ; while many more, as the peach, nectarine, 
grape, cfec, only arrive at a very inferior degree 
of maturity. On the other hand, the apple, cur- 
rant, gooseberry, and indeed all those fruits not 
requiring a w^arm climate, are raised here in 
abundance. 

The svstera of rearins: and fatteninof cattle is 
similar to that pursued in New South Wales. The 
Diitural grasses afford an abundance of pasturage 
at all seasons of the year, and no provision of win- 
ter provender, in the shape of hay, or artificial 
food, is made by the settler for his cattle ; yet, 
notwithstanding this palpable omission, and the 
greater length and severity of the winter, all 
manner of stock attain there a much larger size 
than on the opposite coast. Oxen from three to 
four years old average here about TOOlbs., and 
wethers from two to three years old, from eighty 
to ninety pounds ; while there, oxen of the same 
age seldom exceed 500lbs., and wethers, not more 
than forty pounds. At Port Dalrymple it is 
no uncommon occurrence for yearlings to weigh 
from seventy to eighty pounds, and for three year 
old wethers to weigh 150lbs. and upwards ; but 



VAN DIEM AN LAND. 



199 



tbis great disproportion in weight arises in some 
measure from the greater part of the sheep at 
tbis settlement having become, from constant 
ca'ossing, nearly of the Teeswater breed. Still th 
superior ricliness of the natural pastures in these 
southern settlements is, without doubt, the main 
<muse of the increased weight at which both sheep 
and cattle arrive ; since there is both a kindlier and 
larger breed of cattle in New South Wales, which, 
nevertheless, neither weigh as heavy nor afford as 
much tallow. This is an incontrovertible proof 
that the natural grasses possess much more nutri- 
tive and fattening qualities in this colony than the 
other ; and the superior clearness of the country is 
sufficient to account for this circumstance, without 
taking into the estimate the additional fact, that up 
to a certain parallel of latitude, to which neither 
the one or the other of the colonies in question 
eztends, the superior adaptation of the rearing and 
fattening of cattle is quite unquestionable. The 
vast increase of sheep in this colony, as we noticed 
in the formxcr part of this volume, caused the colo- 
nists to look out for more accommodation, when 
they settled on Port Philip as most eligible. The 
sheep produce fine wool, great quantities of which 
are annually exported to England, France, and 
America. 

There is also a perfect resemblance between the 
animal kingdom of this island and New Holland. 
The native dog, indeed, is unknown here ; but in 
its. place there is an animal of the panther kind, 
which, though not found in such numbers as the 
native dog is in New South Wales, commits dread- 
ful havoc among the flocks. It is true that its 
ravages are not so frequent ; but when they do 
happen, they are much more extensive. This 
animal is of considerable size, and has been known, 



200 



AUSTRALASIA. 



in some instances, to measure six feet and a half from 
the point of the nose to the tip of the tail ; still it 
is cowardly, and by no means formidable to man : 
unless, indeed, when taken by surprise, it inva- 
riably flies liis approach. 

In the feathered tribes of the two islands there 
is scarcely any diversity. Of this the wattle bird, 
which is about the size of the snipe, and considered 
a very great delicacy, is the only instance that can 
be cited. 

Like New Holland, it possesses many varieties 
of poisonous reptiles, but they are neither so 
venomous nor so numerous as in that island. 

Its rivers and seas abound with the same kinds 
of fish. Oysters are found in great perfection ; 
and the rocks that border the coasts and harbours 
are literally covered with mussels. The rivers and 
lakes abound with very fine eels ; and great quan- 
tities of mullet are also caught from November to 
March. 

The dissimilarity between the vegetable king- 
doms of the two islands is chiefly confined to their 
minor productions. In the trees of the forest there 
is scarcely any diflcrence. Yan Dieman's Land 
wants the cedar, mahogany, and rosewood ; but it 
possesses very good substitutes for them in the 
blackwood, and Huon pine, which is a species of 
the yew tree, and remarkable for its strong odori- 
ferous scent and extreme durability. 

The geology of Yan Dieman's Land is very 
varied: basalt is supposed to be the principal 
stratum ; limestone is almost the only mineral tliat 
has been brought into general use ; marble of a 
whitish grey colour, susceptible of a good polish, 
has been found. In the neighbourhood of Hobart 
Town, where the soil is frequently exposed, in the 
progress of improvements, to the depth of six or 



VAN DIEMAis's LAND. 



201 



eight feet, a soft clayey marl has been found, which 
is very useful as manure. The limestone is gene- 
rally of a yellowish or reddish colour, derived, no 
doubt, from the quantity of oxide of iron with 
which it is mixed, and which is profusely scattered 
throughout the whole island. Iron ore is very 
plentiful. It has been analysed, and found to 
contain eighty-five per cent of the perfect mineral. 

Excellent sandstone for building is obtained in 
every quarter of the island, and most of the houses 
in Hobart Town are now built with it, in the place 
of ill, made bricks, as formerly : it is brought from 
different parts generally within half a mile of the 
town. A quarry of a very fine kind has been dis- 
covered at Port Arthur, which is peculiarly suitable 
for filtering-stones, the manufacture of which will 
be found a profitable employment. Indications of 
coal have also been found in various places. 

Of the metallic ores, besides iron, which is most 
abundant, specimens of copper, lead, zinc, manga- 
nese, and, as some assert, silver and gold have 
occasionally been met w^ith. 

Table Mountain, so called fromx the great resem- 
blance it bears to the mountain of that name at the 
Cape of Good Hope, is the most elevated hill, and 
rises to the height of 3936 feet above the level of 
the sea. During three-fourths of the year it is 
covered with snow, and the same violent gusts of 
wind blow from it as from its mountain nauiesake; 
but no gathering clouds on its summit give notice 
of tlje approaching storm. The fiery appearance 
of the heavens, hov/ever, affords a sufiicient warn- 
ing to the inhabitants of the country. These blasts 
are happily confined to the precincts of the moun- 
tain, and seldom last above three hours; but nothing 
can exceed their violence for the time. One voyager 
says, ''I happened to be on board a vessel which 
K 2 



202 



AUSTRALASIA. 



was bound to Hobart Town : in consequence of the 
winds proving scanty, we were obliged to anchor 
during the night in D'Entrecasteaux Channel. The 
following morning we got under weigh, expecting 
that the sea breeze would set in by the time the 
anchor was hove up. The seamen bad no sooner 
effected this, and made all sail, than v/e were over- 
taken with one of these mountain hurricanes. In 
an instant, the vessel was on her beam-ends, and 
in another, liad not ail the sheets and halj^ards 
been let go, she would either have upset, or bad 
her masts carried away. The moment the sails 
were clued up, we brou^ht-to again ; and as we 
lay in a harbour perfectly land -locked and very nar- 
row, the vessel easily rode out this blast. It only 
lasted about two hours ; but the breeze did not 
succeed it that day. The next morning, however, 
it set in as usual. During the continuance of this 
mountain tornado, the waters of the harbour were 
terribly agitated, and taken up in the same manner 
as dust is collected by what are called whirlwinds 
in the country. So great indeed was its fury, that 
it required us to hold on by the ropes, with all our 
force, in order to enable us to keep our footing.'' 

A chain, called the Western Mountains, possess- 
ing a general height of 3500 feet, runs through the 
centre of the island, extending its whole length, 
from north to south. They enclose several lakes, 
and give rise to the principal rivers. Of these the 
Derwent, Hudson, and Tamar, rank in the first 
class. 

There is, perhaps, no island in the world that 
can boast of more fine harbours. The best are the 
Derwent, Port Davy, M'Quarrie Harbour, Port 
Dairy mple, and Oyster Bay. 

The harbour at and conducting to the river 
Derwent, yields to none in the world — perhaps 



9 



VAN dieman's Land. 203 

surpasses every other. There are two entrances 
to this river, which are separated by Pitt's Island ; 
one of these is named D'Entrecasteaux's Channel, 
the other Storm Bay. D'Entrecasteanx's Channel, 
from Point Collins up to Hobart Town, a distance, 
following the course of the river, of thirty-seven 
miles, is one continued harbour, varying in breadth 
from two to eight miles, and in depth from four to 
thirty fathoms. The river Derwent itself has three 
fathoms of water for eleven miles above the town, 
and is consequently navigable thus far for vessels of 
the largest burthen, iieckoning, therefore, from 
Point Collins, there is a line of harbour, in 
D'Estrecasteaux's Channel and the Derwent to- 
gether, of forty-eight miles, completely land-- 
locked, and affording excellent anchorage the 
whole way. 

The entrance by Storm Bay, however, does not 
offer the same advantages ; for it is twenty-two 
miles broad from Maria's Island to Penguin island, 
and completely exposed to the winds from the 
• south to the south-east. The bay, consequently, 
does not afford the same commanding anchorage as 
D'Entrecasteaux's Channel. It contains, however, 
some few nooks, in which vessels may take shelter 
in case of necessity. The principal of these is 
Adventure Bay, which is shut in from any winds 
that can blow directly from the ocean, but is never- 
theless exposed to the north-east winds, which have 
a reach of twenty miles from the opposite side of 
the bay. There is, consequently, when these 
winds prevail, a considerable swell here ; but the 
force of the sea is in a great measure broken by 
Penguin Island ; and vessels possessing good 
anchors and cables have nothing to fear. 

Storm Bay, besides forming one of the entrance^j 
to the river Derwent, leads to another very good 



204 



AUbTRALASIA. 



harbour called North Bay. This harbour is about 
sixteen miles long, and in some places about six 
and a half miles broad. The greater part of it is 
perfectly land-locked, and affords excelleat an- 
chorage in from twelve to ninety feet water. That 
part, in particular, called Norfolk Bay forms a 
very spacious harbour of itself, being about three 
miles in breadth, and nine in length. This bay, 
besides being better sheltered than the rest of the 
harbour, contains the greatest depth of water, 
having in no place less than twenty-four feet. 

All the bays and inlets around Van Dieman's 
Land abound with the black whale at a particular 
season of the year. The leviathans of the deep 
quit the boisterous ocean, and seek the more tran- 
quil waters of the harbours, when they are on the 
point of breeding. This happens in November, 
and they remain there, \^ith their young, between 
two and three months. During this period there 
are, generally, every year, a few of the colonial 
craft employed in the whale fishery; but the duties, 
which were levied in this country on all oils pro- 
cured in vessels not having a British register, 
amounted, for a long time, to a prohibition, and 
prevented the colonists from prosecuting this 
fishery farther than was necessary for their own 
consumption, and for the supply of the East India 
market. Between two and three hundred tons, 
annually, sufficed for both purposes. 

The whales frequently go up the river Derwent 
as far as Hobart Town ; and it is no unc >mmon 
sight for its inhabitants to behold the whole method 
of taking them ; from the moment they are har- 
pooned, until they are killed by the frequent ap- 
plication of the lance. This sight, indeed, has 
been occasionally witnessed by the inhabitants of 
Sydney ; since it has sometimes happened, that a 



VAN DIEMAN's land. 



205 



stray fisli has entered the harbour of Port Jackson 
while some of tlie South-sea whalers have been 
lying there, and that these have lowered their boats 
and killed it. 

A writer of tlie period when the colonists were 
restricted from pursuing this profitable occnpation, 
on account of the heavy duties, very justly repro- 
bates the system : he says — All the bays and 
harbours in Van Dieman's Land, and most of those 
likewise which are in Bass's Straits, and on the 
southern coast of New Holland, abound with these 
fish at the same season. If the coh)nists, tliere- 
fore, were not thus restricted from this fisliery, it 
would soon become an immense source of wealth 
to them ; and I have no doubt that they would be 
enabled to export many hundred tons annually to 
Oreat Britain. Bnt it is in vain that Nature has 
been thus lavish of her bounties to them ; in vain 
do their seas and their harbours invite them to 
embark in these inexhaustible channels of wealth 
and enterprise. Their government— that govern- 
ment which ought to be the foremost in developing 
their nascent efforts, and fostering them to matu- 
rity — is itself the first to check their growth and 
impede their advancement. What a miserly 
system of legislation is it which thus locks up 
from its own subjects a fund of riches, that might 
administer to the vv^ants, and contribute to the hap- 
piness of thousands! What barbarous tantalization, 
to compel them to thirst in the midst of the waters 
of abundance." 

Yan Dieman's Land is divided into thirty-five 
counties : Buckinghamshire, on the south, is the 
metropolitan county, and Cornwall, on the north of 
the island, contains Launceston and George Town. 
These are again subdivided into fifteen police dis- 
tricts : viz., Hobart Town, Launceston, Norfolk 



206 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Plains, Campbell Town, Oat]ands!, Richmond^ 
New Norfolk, Brighton, Both well, Hamilton, 
Westbury, Great Swan Port, George Town, Cir- 
cular Head, and Tasnian's Peninsula. 

Hobart Town, the capital of the island and the 
seat of government, is an extensive, well laid out, 
and neatly built town, on the river Der went, about 
twenty miles from its mouth. The cove or bay, 
upon the banks of which Hobart Town is built, 
affords one of the best and most secure anehoraofes 
in the world, for any number of vessels, and of 
any burthen. 

An amphitheatre of gently rising hills, beau- 
tifully clothed with trees, and having Mount 
Wellington (3,500 feet in elevation) as the highest, 
defends it from the westerly winds, and bounds the- 
horizon in that quarter ; while the magnificent 
estuary of the Der went, with its boats and 
shipping, and picturesque points of land along ita 
winding banks, forming beautiful bays and lakes, 
skirts it on the east. 

The town itself stands upon a gently rising 
ground, and covers rather more than one square 
mile. Its streets are wide, long, and intersecting 
each other at right angles. Being for the most 
part built of freestone, it has even a more city-like 
appearance than Sydney. It contains several 
churches belonging to the Episcopal, Presbyterian, 
and Homan Catholic establishments, which are 
supported by the government; besides chapels 
belonging to the Wesleyan i\Iethodists, Baptists^ 
Independents, Quakers, and a Jewish synagogue, 
which are of course supported by their respective 
congregations. 

The suburbs of Hobart Town has, within these 
few years, undergone considerable improvement ; 
handsome villas and enclosures, occupying ground 



VAN DIEM AN 'S LAND. 



207 



ill every direction, which in some places would 
have been supposed to bid defiance to the hand of 
art. A noble wharf has been constructed, so as to 
allow vessels of the largest burthen to load or 
unload close alongside the shore without the 
assistance of boats. 

Hobart Town contains three banking estab- 
lishments, and the following manufactures and 
trades : agricultural implement makers, brewers, 
<jandle manufactories, coopers, coachmakers, dis- 
tillers, dyers, engineers, feiluiongers, foundries, 
furriers, mast and block manufactory, steam mills, 
water and wind mills, potteries, printing offices, 
ropemakers, sailmakers, saw mills, shipbuilders, 
snuff manufactory, soap manufactory, sugar- 
boilers, tanners, woolstaplers, besides bricklayers, 
carpenters, stonemasons, plumbers, painters, tailors, 
shoemakers, &c. &c. The rates of wages are higher 
io Hobart Town than in Sydney. 

The following description of Hobart Town, 
written in 1819, will show the extent of the im- 
provements that have taken place since that 
period : — 

^' it was founded only fifteen years since ; and 
indeed the rudeness of its appearance sufficiently 
indicates the recency of its origin. The houses 
are in general of the meanest description, seldom 
exceeding one story in height, and being for the 
most pa.rt weather-boarded without, and lathed 
and plastered within. Even the Government House 
is of very bad construction. The residences indeed 
of many private individuals far surpass it. The 
population may be estimated at about one thousand 
souls. (It may now be computed at twenty 
four thousand.) 

" This town is built principally on two bills., 
between which there is a fine btream of excellent 



208 



AUSTRALASIA. 



water, that issues from the Table Mountain. On 
this stream a flour mill has been erected, and there 
is sufficient fall in it for the erection of two or three 
more. There are also, within a short distance of 
the town, several other streams which originate ia 
the same mountain, and are well adapted to similar 
purposes.'' 

Launceston is next in rank and commercial im- 
portance. It is situated on the north side of the 
island, distant, by a good road, 121 miles from 
Hobart Town. This neighbourhood contains the 
richest land in the island, backed by gently rising 
hills, at the confluence of the north and south Esk 
rivers, which there form the Tamar, flowing about 
forty-five miles, when it disembogues itself into 
Bass's Straits. This town is thriving rapidly, 
owing to its being the maritime key of a large and 
fertile country, and aftording sufficient water for 
vessels of 400 tons burthen to load and discharge 
cargoes alongside the wharfs, which are com- 
modious. 

The following will show the increase of the 
population in Van Dieman's Land, since the estab- 
lishment of the colonv : — viz., in 1804, 400; 
1816, 629: 1822, 4,996; 1827, 7,260; 1830, 
10,195; 1837, 44,121 ; 1847 (the latest census), 
70,164, or fifty-nine per cent increase on the last 
ten years. 

The following are the places of worship in Van 
Dieman's Land: Church of England, 12 ; Presby- 
terians, 4 ; Roman Catholics, 2 ; AVesleyans, 2 ; 
Independents, 1 : Total, 21. Two new churches 
are now building. 

The government pays great attention to the 
education of the young. The following is an ab- 
stract of the state of the Government Schools : — 

1. Back River, One daily school, attended by 



VAN DIEMAn's land. 



209 



7 males, and 12 females. The number of cliildren 
admitted since the commencement is 37. Govern- 
ment allowi3 £25. per annum towards the rent of 
a school-house. The mistress receives <£25. per 
annum ; in addition to whicli eight of the children 
pay Is. a week each. The children are taught 
.spelling, reading, writing, arithmetic, and English 
grammar ; the girls also learn marking, netting, and 
plain needlework. 

2. Bagdad, One daily school; 7 males and 15 
females. Number of children 41. Of the daily 
scholars 12, of both sexes, also attend on Sundays. 
Government allows ,£25. per annum towards the 
rent of a school-house. Master £50., mistress £25. 
per annum ; in addition to which nineteen of the 
scholars pay £S. lOs. 7d. a v/eek. Reading, 
grammar, geography, writing, arithmetic, and the 
Latin rudiments ; the girls likewise learn needle- 
work, &c. 

3 BothwelL One daily school ; 17 males, 
10 females. Number of children 41. Twenty-six, 
of both sexes, also attend on Sundays. The school- 
house belongs to government. Master £25. per 
annum, in addition to v/hich ten of the schoolboys 
pay lOs^a week. Spelling, reading, writing, and 
aritlimetic. 

4. Brighton. One daily school ; 5 males and 
6 females. Number of children 17. Government 
allows X20. per annum towards the rent of a 
school-house. Master £25. per annum ; in addi- 
tion to which seven of the scholars pay 7s. a week. 
Spelling, reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

5. Campbell Town. One daily school ; 5 ijnales 
and ] 3 females. Number of children 37. Govern- 
ment allows £25. per annum towards the rent of 
the school house. Master £25., mistress £15. per 
annum ; in addition to which eight of the scholars 



210 



AUSTRALASIA. 



pay 83. a week. Spelling, reading, writing, and 
arithmetic. 

6. Carlton, One daily school; 7 males and 
6 females. Number of children 37. Of the daily 
scholars 13 attend also on Sundays. Government 
allows £10. per annum for rent of a school-house. 
Master £30. per annum ; in addition to which 
nine of the scholars pay 9s. a week. Spelling, 
reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

7. Clarence Plains. One daily school ; 15 males 
and 11 females. . Number of children 99. The 
school-house is government property. Master 
£50., mistress £25. ; in addition to which twenty- 
three of the scholars pay 29s. 7d. a week. Spelling, 
reading, writing, history, geography, arithmetic, 
and the Latin language. 

8. Evandale, One daily school ; 9 males and 
4 females. Number of children 23. Of the daily 
scholars thirteen attend also on Sundays. Govern- 
ment allows £25. f^r rent of school- house. Master 
£50., mistress £25. per annum ; in addition to 
which tw^enty-one of the scholars pay lis. 6d. a 
week. Spelling, reading, writing, arithmetic, and 
English grammar. 

9. George Town, One daily school ; 40 males 
and 8 females. Number of children 19. Of the 
daily scholars eighteen attend also on Sundays. 
The school-house belongs to government, blaster 
£50., mistress £25. ; in addition to which thirteen 
of the children pay 138. a week. Spelliug, reading, 
writing, arithmetic, and geography ; the girls are 
also taught needlework, kc. 

10k Glenorchy. One daily school; 12 males 
and 13 females. Numoer of children 41. Twenty 
also attend on Sundays. Government allows £25. 
per annum for rent of school-house. Master £5C., 
mistress £25 ; in addition to which nine of the 



VAN DIEM AN 'S LAND. 



211 



cliildren pay 9s. a week. Spelling, reading, 
writing, arithmetic, with needlework for the girls. 

11. Green Ponds, One daily school; 12 males 
and 8 females. Number of children 29. Of the 
daily scholars fourteen also attend on Sundays. 
Government allows £25. per annum for rent of 
school-house. Master £50., mistress £25. per 
annum ; in addition to which twelve of tiie scholars 
pay 12s. a week. Spelling, reading, writing, 
geography, grammar, arithmetic, with needlework 
for the girls. 

12. Hamilton. One daily school ; 8 males and 
7 females. Number of cliildren 29. Government 
allows £25. per annum for rent of school-house. 
Master c£25., mistress £15. per annum; in addi- 
tion to which ten of the scholars pay 6s. a week. 
Spelling, reading, writing, geography and arith- 
metic. 

13. Hohart and Suburbs — St. David's parish. 
Two daily schools ; one of which, belonging to the 
Established Church, is attended by 31 males and 
19 females. Number of children 1,332. Of tbe 
daily scholars twenty-four also attend on Sundays. 
Government rents the school- house at £115. iCs. 
per annum. Master £88., mistress €25. per 
annum ; in addition to which twenty-six of the 
children pay 7s. 9d. a week. Spelling, reading, 
writing, and arithmetic. 

14. From the other school, which belongs to 
Roman Catholics, no return has been made. 

15. Sandy Bay ^ or Qiieensbrd parish. One daily 
scliool ; 9 males and 10 females. Number of chil- 
dren 57. Of the daily sell olars twelve attend also 
on Sundays. Master £30., mistress £30. per 
annum ; in addition to vi?hich fourteen of the 
children pay 9s. 6d. per week. Spelling, reading, 
writing, and arithmetic. 



212 



AUSTRALASIA. 



16. Trinity parish. One daily school ; 70 males 
and 54 females. Number of children 260. Sixty- 
nine attend also on the Sundays. Government 
rents the school-house at £80. per annum, but it 
is too small for the number of children now attend- 
ing it. Master £50., mistress £25. per annum ; 
in addition to which ] 24 of the scholars pay 
£3. 12s. a week. Spelling, reading, writing, 
grammar, geography, and arithmetic. 

17. Launcedon. One daily school ; 26 males 
and 19 females. Number of children 735. Of 
the daily scholars thirty-two also attend on Sun- 
days. The school-house belongs to government. 
Master £50., mistress £25. per annum ; in addi- 
tion to which eight of the scholars pay 4s. 9d. a 
week. Spelling, reading, wanting, and arithmetic. 

18. Longford. No return. 

19. New Norfolk. One daily school ; 17 males 
and 6 females. Number of children 54. Of the 
daily scholars thirty attend also on Sundays. 
Government rents a school-house at ^25. per 
annum. Master £50., mistress £25. per annum ; 
in addition to which nine of the scholars pay 
4s. 6d. a week. Spelling, reading, writing, gram- 
mar, geography, and arithmetic, w^ith needlework 
for the girls. 

20. Norfolk Plains., east. One daily school ; 
8 males and 9 females. Number of children 61. 
Of the daily scholars t])irteea also attend on 
Sundays. The school-house is private property, 
for which no rent is charged. Master £25., per 
annum ; in addition to which twelve of the scholars 
pay I2s. a week. Spelling, reading, writing, 
arithmetic, and grammar. 

21. Oatlands. One daily school ; 12 males and 
14 females. Number of children 32. Of the daily 
scholars four attend also on Sundays. Government 



VAN DIEMAN S LAND- 



213 



allows £25. per annum for tlie rent of a school- 
house. Master £25., mistress £15. per annum ; 
in addition to which eighteen of the scholars pay 
13s. 6d. a week. Spelling, readings vmting, 
grammar, and arithmetic. 

22. Pp.rth. One daily school ; 6 males and 
8 females. Number of children 36. Of the daily 
scholars nine attend also on Sundays. Master £25., 
mistress ^15. per annum ; in addition to which 
ten of the scholars pay 7s. a week. Spelling, 
reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

23. Port Arthur. One daily school; 10 males 
and 6 females. School-house is government pro- 
perty. Master ^25. per annum. Spelling, read- 
ing, writing, and arithmetic. 

24. Richmond. One daily school ; 8 males and 
8 females. Number of children 27. School -house 
belongs to government. Master £50., mistress 
£25. per annum ; in addition to which nine of the 
children pay 14s. a week. Spelling, reading, 
writing, geography, and arithmetic, with needle- 
work for the girls. 

25. Ross. No return. 

26. Sorell. One daily school; 18 males and 
12 females. Number of children 220. School- 
bouse government property. Master £50., mis- 
tress £25. per annum ; in addition to which fifteen 
of the scholars pay 7s. a v^eek. Spelling, reading, 
history, grammar, writing, and arithmetic, 

27. Springs. One daily school ; 8 males and 
7 females. Number of children 38. Government 
rents the school -house at £25. per annum. Master 
£25. per annum ; in addition to which eleven of 
the scholars pay 7s. a week. Spelling, reading, 
writing, and arithmetic. 

28. Westhury. One daily school; 12 males 
and 5 females. Number of children 19. The 



214 



AUSTRALASIA. 



whole of the daily scholars attend also on Sundays, 
School-house belongs to government. Master £50., 
mistress £25. per annum; in addition to which 
six of the scholars pay 6s. a week. Spelling, 
reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

29. York. One daily school ; 12 males and 
1 female. Number of children 20. Government 
allows £25. per annum for a school house. Master 
£25, per annum ; in addition to which four of the 
children pay 2s. 6 d. a week. Spelling, reading, 
writing, English grammar, and arithmetic. 

Total number of schools 29 ; number which have 
made returns 26. In these 26 the number of 
scholars are — males 361, females 294 ; total 655. 
Number of Sunday-schools 18 ; of scholars 343. 
Number of children who pay towards their 
education 415. Amount of weekly payments 
£18. lis. 2c]. Spelling, reading, writing, and 
arithmetic are taught in 15 ; English grammar 
and geography, in 12 ; Latin, in 2. Of the 
26 schools, 18 have both master and mistress; 
8 have only a master ; 18 are conducted on BelFs 
system, 1 on the British and Foreign School, and 
in 10 an anomalous system is pursued. 

In addition to the schools mentioned above, there 
are the King's Orphans* schools at Newton, con- 
taining 216 males- and 200 females and the school 
at Point Puer, in which all the hoys sent to that 
establishment are taught reading, a knowledge of 
the Scriptures, &c. 

Besides these, there are a number of private 
seminaries throughout the island, in which all the 
branches of education are taught. Nine of these 
are in Hobart Town, and eight in Launcestori. 

The annual expense to the government for edu- 
cational purposes averages from £7,000. to £8,000. 

The revenue of Van Dieman's Land is derived 



VAN dieman's Land. 



215 



froin customs duties, excis^ fees, sales of land, quit 
rents, (fee. Goods of British manufacture are im- 
ported free ; goods of foreign manufacture ate 
charged 5 per cent, ad valorem. Spirits are charged 
with a duty of 10s. per*gallon on brandy, hollands, 
and geneva ; West -India rum or British gin, 
7s. 6d. ; tobacco, Is. 6d. per lb. ; a license to distil 
or sell spirits costs £25. per annum ; to bake o^ 
sell bread, 5s.; to slaughter cattle or sheep, 5s. ; 
to keep a dog, on the chain, 5s., off ditto, 10s., and 
a bitch ditto, £l, ; to keep a cart for hire, 5s. ; 
auctioneer's license, £S. 3s. ; marriage license, 
<£4. 4s. There are also fees on grants of lands 
equivalent to stamp duties. The post oiSioe 
produces a clear income of upwards of X2,500. 
The annual revenue of Van Dieman's Land exceeds 
^200,000. 

The rapidly increasing trade of this colony has 
augmented the value of imports nearly tenfold, 
within the last twenty years, and now amount to 
about £6*50,000. annually ; and the tonnage has 
been extended in the proportion of seven to one. 
The value of land and cattle has increased, during 
the same period, 450 per cent. 

The principal exports of the colony consist of 
wool, whale and seal oil, whalebone, and bark to 
Great Britain ; and provisions and live stock to 
the neighbouring colonies. The quantity of wool 
exported annually is about three million pounds, 
which sells in the London market at from Is. 6(h 
to 2s. 6d. per lb. The total exports amount to 
about £700,000. 

A " Van Dieman's Land Company" was incor- 
porated, by act of parliament, in 1825, the main 
objects of which will be best understood by insert- 
ing the following — 



\ 



216 AUSTRALASIA. 

Abstract of THEfYAN Dieman's Land 
Company's Charter. 

The Van Dieman's Land Company's Charter, 
bearing date 1st September, 1825, is founded on 
tlie Act of the Gth Geo. lY. 4. c. 29. 

The charter, after setting forth the objects con- 
templated in the Act, defines the scope of the 
operations of the company. It empowers the 
company to expend their capital in the improve- 
ment of their lands, and the construction of works 
thereon, and in providing passages for free emi- 
grants. It conveys the power of working mines 
and raising minerals, subject to such conditions as 
might be imposed by the colonial government. 

The company may make loans, on the security 
of lands and hereditaments" situated within the 
colony, to the amount of £50,000. in the whole ; 
a record of each such transaction to be enrolled in 
the supreme court, within one month from the date 
thereof. 

They are also empowered to make loans to the 
amount of £20,000. on any " bonds or judgments" 
(such loans to be subject to the further regulation 
of the government) ; but they are prohibited from 
entering into any banking operations. Loans 
may be made, without restriction, to persons 
settling on their lands, for the purpose of making 
improvements. 

They may enter into contracts for public works 
to the amount of £50,000. This license, however, 
to continue for ten years only, and be then subject 
to renewal, or to be withdrawn. 

They may advance money to the government to 
the amount of £100,000. on security of the colo- 
nial taxes or tolls. Tliis license to continue for tea 
years only, subject to renewal. 



VAN DIEMAr/s LAND. 



217 



They may advance n%oney on wliale or seal 
fisheries, to the extent of £20.000. 

They may expend capital to the amonnt of 
£20,000. in 'Mionses,^wh;irfs, and bnildings," and 
also to the amount of £10,000. for any other 
description of real property, " lands or heredita- 
ments.*' Such last mentioned property (not being 
a wharf, house, or other building) to be otily 
through a license from the governor. The secretary 
of state for the colonies, may authorise the company 
to increase such loans and investments of capital, 
should it appear for the benefit of the colony to do 
so. Provision is then made for regulating the 
tenure of the grant. 

1. The grants to be made under the seal of the 
colony, in pursuance of v^arrants under the royal 
sign manual. 

2. A quit^rentto be chargeable of one and a half 
per cent, on the lands. 

3. No quit-rent to be due or payable for five 
years from the date of the grant. 

4. May redeem the quit-rent by payment of 
twenty times its amount. 

5. They must employ an equal number of con- 
victs to their number of free labourers, provided 
the governor should be able to supply sucli a 
number. 

6. One free overseer to be employed to everv 
fifty convicts. 

7. None of the company's land to be alienated 
for five years from the date of the grant, under the 
penalty of a forfeiture to the crown. 

8. The company to have the power of alienating 
any portion of their land, after such jieriod of five 
years, not exceeding 12,500 acres, after liaving 
proved to the local government an expench'ture 
of £2,500. ; and so on in like proportion, and on 

L 



218 



AUSTRALASIA. 



similar conditions, to tbe#extent of one-lialf their 
grants; they uiav also lease, for any period not 
exceeding twenty- one years, any portions of their 
land, to the extent of one~hal^ th.eir grant. 

9 — 11. The quit -rent chargeable on the com- 
pany's land shall be paid at intervals of five years; 
the first payment to be made afcer the expiration 
of ten years from the date of the grant. It is also 
provided, that the quit- rent may be reduced by the 
employment and maintenance of 150 convicts 
during the greater part of the second period of 
five years from the date of the grant ; of 250 
convicts during the third period ; and of 350 during 
the fourth period. 

12. The lands shall be free from quit- rent if, 
• within twenty years from the date of the grant, 
the company sliall make it appear that they have 
relieved the local treasury from a charge equal to 
£25.000. by the maintenance of convicts, to be 
calculated at the rate of £16. for each convict 
supported during the year. 

The capital of the company is fixed at one million 
sterling, to be raised in shares of one hundred 
pounds each. 

Then follow various provisions relative to the 
appointment of directors, office-bearers, meetings, 
(TC. d:c. 

The following letter from Lord Bathurst, secre- 
tary of state for the colonies, will show to tlie reader 
the terms on which government were at that time 
disposed to grant land in the colony of Van Die- 
man's Land to English companies possessed of 
capital. It is addressed to jlr. Edv»\ard Curr, 
secretary to the proposed Van Dieman's Land 
Company — 



VAN DIEM AN 'S LAND. 



219 



^' BoiDmng Street, 15th Aprils 1825. 

Sir, 

" Having had under my consideration, the letter which 
on the 22nd ultimo you addressed to me, on behalf of the 
merchants and others, #who have associated themselves 
together as a company, for the cultivation and improve- 
ment of waste lands in his Majesty's island of Van Dieman's 
Land, I have thought it right, in transmitting my answer 
to your proposals, to avail myself of the opportunity this 
correspondence affords, of stating to you explicitly the 
terms upon which I am prepared to advise his Majesty to 
sanction the formation of the projected company. 

^'It vfould be superfluous to state in this place the reasons 
which have induced me to consider the establishment of a 
company for the cultivation and improvement of waste 
lands, in more than one of bis Majesty's colonies, as an 
undertaking deserving the support of bis Majesty's govern- 
' ment. It is sufficient to express the conviction of his 
Majesty's government, that the introduction of capital, 
judiciously applied, cannot fail to produce the most bene- 
ficial results. It must, therefore, form the essential basis 
of every such plan, that adequate security should be given 
that the nominal capital of any company of this desciiption 
will be really raised and expended in carrying the avowed 
designs of the subscribers into effect. 

^^I must, therefore, stipulate, on behalf of his Majesty's 
government, that, before any bill is brought into Parlia- 
ment for investing the Van Diaman's Land Company with 
the necessary powers, four-fifths of the capital, at least, 
should be actually subscribed, and I shall expect to receive, 
on the personal credit of the very respectable gentle- 
men whose names are placed at the head of the pro- 
posed company, an assurance that the subscribers are, 
in general, persons of capital and substance adequate to 
the payment of their subscriptions. 

I shall further require, as a necessary preliminary to the 
granting of the charter, that the subscribers shall actually 
pay up, and deposit in the hands of the directors, five per 
cent, upon the amount of the capital subscribed, and an 
additional five per cent, on that amount, before the lands 
, to be granted by the crown are actually delivered into the 
possession of the company. If, in addition to these securi- 
ties, it were possible to render the shares of the capital 
stock of the company inalienable for a few years, I should 
be much disposed to insist on such a condition. But being, 
in full consideration of the subject, persuaded that thd 



220 



AUSTRALASIA. 



number of exceptions to sncb^ a rule which, must be ad- 
mitted, combined with the various contrivances which 
might be devised for eluding its operation, would deprive 
the rule itself of all practical efficacy, I have decided not 
to insist upon such a condition. At a substitute for it, how- 
ever, I shall expect the company to agree to the following 
regulation: — The capital originally subscribed will be 
divided into shares of £50. each, and the certificates to be 
delivered to shareholders will be expressed accordingly. 
But as in the progress of the undertaking it may be neces- 
sary that additional capital should be raised, it will be 
provided that his Majesty's government may authorise the 
creation of an additional capital, equal in amount to that 
originally subscribed. 

*^ This additional capital will also be divided into shares 
of £50. each, and the origioal subscribers will be required 
to agree, for themselves, and their representatives, that each 
person will accept a number of the second set of shares 
equal to the number which, at the time of such increase of 
capital, he may hold in the original shares. 

"Although the sanction of his Majesty's government 
will precede the increase of capital, it is, on the other hand, 
to be understood that this sanction will not be given unless 
it shall be applied for in a petition adopted at a general 
meeting of the subscribers, and unless his Majesty's govern- 
ment shall receive satisfactory proof that a considerable 
proportion of the original capital has been bona fide apphed 
and expended in the prosecution of the tmdertaking. 

'^The capital to be origrDally subscribed vrill be £500,000. 
sterling, and will be* divided into ten thousand shares. 
Each director and auditor of the company will be required 
to hold fifty shares, as the necessaiy qualification for his 
admission and continuance in those offices. 

" It is necessary that the manner in which it shall be 
lawful for the company to employ this capital should be 
defined, vdth as much precision as the nature of the sub- 
ject will admit ; for it must be clearly understood, that 
every intentional deviation from the mode of employment 
authorised by the terms of the charter, according to their 
fair and equitable construction, will be deemed a violation 
of the tei-ms upon which such charter was granted. 

As soon as the proposed charter of incorporation shall 
be obtained, and the necessary survey completed, I shall 
be ready to advise his Majesty to make to the company a 
grant of two himdred and fifty thousand acres of land in 
the Island of Van Dieman's Land ; and one of the primary 



VAN DIEM AN 'S LAND. 



221 



objects in whicli the company will be authorised to expend 
their capital will be the clearing, improvement, and culti- 
vation of this tract of land. The words " improvement 
and cultivation/' will be understood in a large and liberal 
sense, as including the formation of roads, drains, and 
bridges; the erection of houses, mills, and other works 
and machinery, necessary or convenient for the occupation 
or profitable cultivation of the soil ; the depasturing of 
sheep or cattle, and generally such operations of agricultiu^e 
or pasturage as the exigences and peculiar situation of 
settlers, in a new colony, may require. 

Another mode of employing the capital of the com- 
pany, will consist in the defrayiiig the expenses incident 
to the emigration of persons proposing to settle upon any 
part of the company's estates ; in which of course is in- 
cluded all charges of freight, outfit and other expenses 
incident to the removal of emigrants, and to the settling 
them on their arrival. 

" With respect to the operations of mining, it may be 
necessary to remark that the crown has always reserved 
to itself, upon the grant of waste land in the colonies, all 
mines and minerals beneath the surface. A similar reser- 
vation will be made in the grant v^hich may be issued in 
favour of the proposed company. Permission, however, 
v/ill be given to the compa.ny to accept leases or grants of 
mines from his Majesty within the Island of Van Dieman's 
Land, and to'employ their capital in raismg minei als, and 
in all other expenses ordinarily incident to that operation. 
It will, however, be clearly undcstood that the company 
is not to engage in any mining concerns, except upon such 
lands as may be expressly demised or granted to them by 
the crown for that purpose, and that such grants or leases 
will prescribe such conditions as may from time to time 
appear necessary to his Majesty, for preventing the capital 
of the company being engaged in these undertakings to 
an unreasonable extent, or in an improvident manner. It is 
scarcely necessary to add, that it will be altogether optional 
with the crown to make or to withhold such grants or 
leases, and that without an express grant or lease the 
company will not be at liberty to engage in mining opera- 
tions, even upon their -own lands. The ordinary operations 
of quarrymg, or raising lime, cl?y, or other materials for 
building, do not fall within the meaning of this prohi- 
bitory rule. 

"The employment of the capital of the company in 
making loans to settlers will be permitted, but this power 



222 



AUSTRALASIA. 



must not be exercised, except under such restrictions as 
have appeared to me necessarj' for preventin? the abuf^es 
to which such a power, if unrestricted, might obviously 
lead. First, then, it will be required that all loans of this 
nature should be matter of public record, a.nd that the 
whole amount of the money for which the company may 
at any one time be in advance to settlers, shall not exceed 
£50,000 sterling. Further, the company will be permitted 
to lend money on mortgage to persons not settled on their 
own estates, but in such a manner as only will give them, 
in default of payment, the right, not of foreclosure, bnt of 
■sale ; and in every loan made on mortgaoe a provision 
shall be introduced for the repayment of the money bor- 
rowed by instalments. In the event of the company 
bringing the estate of their debtor to a judicial sale, they 
will not be permitted to become the purchasers of it from 
the sheriff, for any price greater than the sums which the 
company ma.y have vested on the mortgage of such estate. 

" The preceding regulations respecting the lending of 
money on mortgage will not extend to the case of pei'sons 
effecting settlements on the compauy's estates. I do not 
deem it necessary to limit the amount of capital which 
may be advanced to this class of settlers, or to restrain 
the company from enteriug into such contracts with them, 
as, upon general principles of law, ma,y be made by way 
of mortgage between any private capitalist and the owners 
of the land. 

" With respect to the employment of the capital of the 
company on loans to private individuals upon mere per- 
sonal security, it is requisite to l8.y down explicitly the 
distinction which it will be necessary to observe. It can- 
not be too plainly stated, that transactions in the nature 
of banking operations cannot be permitted. The company 
will therefore not be at liberty to lend any money at in- 
terest to any private person by way of discount upon bills 
of exchange, promissory notes, or other negotiable securities 
which, by the custom of trade, are trausferrable by delivery, 
or by a simi>le indorsement ; still less can they be allowed 
to open a runuiua: account with any private person in the 
nature of an oT dinary banker's account. But they will be 
permitted to advance money to any private person resident 
in the island on the security of bonds or judgments, pro- 
vided that the wliole amount of such loans shall not at 
any time exceed £20,000, and sr.bject to such regulations 
as may from time to time be laid down for the prevention 
of abuses. 



VAN dieman's land. 223 

" The employment of a portion of the capital of the com- 
pany in the accomplishment of public works will be 
expressly sanctioned : but here also the permission must 
be qualified by such limitations as have appeared to be 
necessary to obviate its possible abuse. In the first place, 
the company will not be permitted, at any one time, to 
embark mor§ than £50,000 in the whole, in any under- 
taking of this nature. At the expiration of ten years from 
the dat/C of this charter, the power of employing any part 
of their capital in the execution of pubUc v/orks, will 
cease, unless his Majesty's government shall, at that 
period, see fit to continue that power for a further period. 
And finally, the company v/ili not consider themseh es as 
having any claim to be preferred above private persons in 
contracts of this nature, unless their proposals should, by 
the local government, be deemed more advantageous than 
those of any other candidates. 

" If the governor and legislative council of the colony 
should, at any time, pass an act for borrowing money for 
the public service, on the securities of tolls, or other 
public taxes, the company will be permitted, m the event 
of such acts being confirmed by bis Majesty, to become 
-competitors for any such loans, provided that they are 
never in advance, on that account, in a greater sum than 
£100,000 at any one time. This power of making loans 
will, however, expire in ten years from the date of the 
charter, nnless it should then be renewed for a limited 
period, by the express sanction of his Majesty's govern- 
ment. 

Whaling and sealing are mentioned in your letter as 
affording a mode in which the capital of the company 
might be invested with advantage to the colony. The 
conduct of a whale fishery upon an extensive scale, requires 
so much attention, and so large an expenditure, and in- 
volves so much risk, that I cannot deem it right to sanc- 
tion the diversion of the capital of the company or the 
time of its agents, into such a. channel. But so far as 
whaling and sealing, undertaken on the account and risk 
of others, can be pi'omoted by loans of money to be mad.e 
by the company, according to the preceding coT\ditions, 
there will be no objection to that employment of it, to an 
extent not exceeding £20,000. 

" Having thus defined in general the purposes for which 
the capital of the company may be employed, I proceed 
to state the general rule, that it is not to be engaged in 
any species of trade. Without undertaking to furnish a 



224 



AUSTRALASIA. 



precise definition of the general term, I would l>e tiiider- 
stood to mean by trade" any transaction in the nature and 
barter of sale, which might not be fairly and hona fide 
undertaken for the purpose of converting into cash, or re- 
mitting to other ports, in the most convenient and econo- 
mical manner, the produce of the company's lands. 

The investment of the capital of the company in the 
purchase of lands in the colony, will not be permitted 
except in special cases, in which they shall first obtain the 
license of the governor, it being understood, that even 
with his license, they can never at any one time have in- 
vested in the purchase of land more than £10,000. 

^' In reference to your request that the company may 
be at liberty to invest ^ome portion of its capital in the 
purchase of houses and wharfs in the different townships, 
I am to apprise you that to the extent of £20,000, such 
investments t\t.11 be permitted, and that for that purpose 
the license of the local government will not be necessary. 

^'As the preceding limitations, with regard to the 
amount of the capital which the company may embark in 
the several particular operations above enumerated, may 
in process of time require revision, a power will be re- 
served to the crown to authorise by a license, through the 
secretary of state, any augmentation of such advances 
which experience may show to be necessary or desirable. 

Vrith respect to the grant and selection of the lands 
to be conceded to the company, the following rules will 
be observed : 

" The company will receive their grant in the north-west 
district of the island, that district being for the present 
purpose, considered as bounded on the north by Bass's 
Straits ; on the west by the ocean, and on the east and 
south by lines drawn from either shore so as to afford the 
necessary depth of country. Within that district they 
will be at liberty to select any ungranted lauds at their 
own discretion. Those lands must however lie in one 
continuous and unbroken tract, approximatmg to the form 
of a square, as nearly as may be, compatible with pre- 
serving a clear and well defined natural boundary. The 
whole quantity of useful laud, that is, land capable of 
being used in pasturage or tillage, to be contained in this 
square, is two hundred and fifty thousand acres. What- 
ever useless and unprofitable land may be unavoidably 
included in order to complete the square figure, will be 
granted to the company gratutiously. 

The survey and valuation of the land thus to be 



VAN DIEMAN'S land. 



225 



granted to the company will be carried into effect by five 
commissioners, of whom two will be appointed by the 
crown, and two by the company. The fifth commissioner 
will be elected by the four thus appointed. If the majority 
cannot concur in the election within fourteen days after 
their own appointment, then at the expiration of that 
period, the governor or ofiicer administet ing the govern- 
ment of Van Dieman's Land, will, on his Majesty's behalf, 
nominate a fifth commissioner. In the event of the death, 
resignation, or absence from the colony of any one of the 
five commissioners before the survey is completed, a suc- 
cessor will be appointed by the surviving or continuing 
commissioners ; and if they cannot concur in electing a 
successor within fourteen days after the vacancy has oc- 
curred, the nomination will be made by the officer ad- 
ministering the government of the island. 

" The remuneration of the commissioners appointed by 
his Majesty will be provided for and paid by his Majesty ; 
that of the commissioners appointed by the company will 
be provided for and paid by them. The remuneration of 
the fifth commissioner, and the other expenses incident to 
the commission, will be provided and paid for equally 
between his Majesty and the company, those expenses 
being first taxed and allowed by the officer administering 
the government of the island. 

The commissioners will make a report in writing to 
the governor or the lieutenant governor, of the result 
of their survey and valuation, and a report of the 
majority of their number must be taken as the report 
of the whole body. In that report, they will state with 
all possible precision, the exact limits of the grant to be 
made to the company, especially distinguishing all the 
natural boundaries ; and they will also state the average 
value per acre of that part of the land which is capable of 
being employed in pasturage or tillage. 

" So soon as the limits of the intended grant shall be 
thus ascertained, the officer for administering the govern- 
ment of the island will be authorised to issue a grant of it 
to the company, to be held by them and their successors 
in free and common soccage. In this grant a quit-rent 
will be charged upon the land, amounting to SOs. per 
annum, upon every hundred pounds of the ascertained 
value of the land to be comprised in the grant. The quit 
rent will not become payable until after the expiration of 
five years from the date of the grant, Upoii giving six 
montfes' notice in writing to the local government, the 
L 2 



226 



AUSTRALASIA. 



company will be at liberty to redeem the quit-rent, or any 
pai-t of it, by paying into the colonial treasury a sum equal 
to twenty times the amount of the rent proposed to be 
extinguished. If the local government should be able and 
willing to supply the company with a number of convict 
labourers, not exceeding the number of free labourers em- 
ployed by them in their grant, the company will accept 
such convicts, and employ and maintain them at their own 
expense. If v.ithin fifteen years from the date of the 
grant, it shall be made to appear that the company have 
saved to his Z^Iaje.vty's government, by the maintenance of 
convicts, the su-n of £25,000 sterling, then all the lands 
contained in such grant will be for ever exonerated from 
all future quit-rents. It will be estimated that his Majesty's 
government has saved £16 sterling by each convict wholly 
kept and ma.intained by tlie company for one year 

'•In order to cany into full enect the preceding con- 
ditions, and to invest the company with all the powers 
which may be necessary for the accomplishment of their 
undertaking, I will recommend the necessary measm'es for 
obtaining a charter of incorporation under the great seal 
of the United Kmgdom, and for introducing into Parlia- 
ment a bill for gra iting to the company such necessary 
powers as it would not be competent to his Majesty, in 
the exercise of his prerogative, to confer. 

^' I am, Sir, your obedient humble Seiwant, 

(Signed) Bathurst." 

Edward Olut, Esq. 
" 48, Lothbury.'^ 

Such were the rules and regulations laid down 
for the formation of this company ; and these hav- 
ing been eagerly embraced, the necessary measures 
w^ere taken for obtaining the charter of incorpora- 
tion. It was accordingly established in 1825, with 
a capital of £1,000.000 sterling, divided into 10,000 
shares of «£l00 each. 

The general management of the affairs of the 
eompany in London is vested in a governor, de- 
puty-governor, eighteen directors, three auditors, 
and the secretary to the company. 

The superintendence in Van Dieman's Land de- 



VAN DIEMAN*S LAND. 



227 



volves upon the chief agent ; and the main objects 
are — " To let lands in locations of one square mile 
or 640 acres. The rent to be £64 per annum for 
the 640 acres. Tiie first year and a half's rent to 
be expended by the tenant in fencing ; half of the 
next half-year's rent, or £16, also to be expended 
in permanent improvements, and the balance, or 
£16, to be paid in cash ; half the third yearns rent, 
or £32, to be expended in like manner, and the 
balance paid in cash. The fourth and future years* 
rents to be paid wholly in cash. Leases granted 
for twenty-one years to the first twenty families 
going out, after which no lease granted for a longer 
period than fourteen years. 

"Tenants to be supplied with stores by the 
company on rao'lerate terms. Seed-corn will be 
lent to tenants, to be repaid out of their first crop. 
Clover and grass-seeds will be supplied to tenants 
engaging to lay down lands to grass on the com- 
pany's estates. Timber carriages., to assist in 
clearing away trees, will be lent gratis by the com- 
pany to tenants of forest land,'' &c., &c. 

The company's grants consist of l^SO.OOO acres 
on the north-west coast, including the islands off 
the coast, in climate and soil resembling the west 
of England ; and 170.000 acres of tl^e interior of 
the island, in climate and soil resembling the nor- 
thern counties of England and the southern coun- 
ties of Scotland. 

The determination of the directors is to pursue 
tillage, with the view to artificial grasses, and to 
encourage the increa-e of the valuable imported 
flocks of sheep. The number of inhabitants and 
live stock on tl^e company's lands, in 1838, was — 
Inhabitants, 164; hor.^es, 188; deer, 11; cattle 
and working oxen, 1488 ; sheep, 6475 ; swine, 86. 

This colony has of late years attracted consider- 



228 



AUSTRALASIA. 



able attention, and from its natural advantages, has 
risen into a very important commercial settlement ; 
but, according to the opinion of several writers on 
these colonies, it is not to be compared to New 
South Wales. 

The Rev. Dr. Lang says — " It is now no longer 
necessary to institute comparisons between the 
colonies of New S>)Uth Wales and Yan Dieman's 
Land, to induce intending emigrants to direct their 
course to the one of those colonies rather than to 
the other. The fact that during the last two years, 
there has been a ver\ CDUsiderable emigration from 
Yan Dieman*s Land to New South Wales, inso- 
much that more than 200 persons have actually 
crossed over from that i^land to the continent of 
New Holland, carrying along with them upwards 
of 30,000 sheep, with hordes and cattle in propor- 
tion, and forming a settlement of squatters at Port 
Philip, in Bass's Straits, is surely decisive of this 
question, as far as intending emigrants are con- 
oeriied. 

'•There is no article of agricultural produce 
raised in Yan Dieman's Land that is not cultivated 
successfully in New South Wales; but there are 
many articles that may be cultivated in New Soutli 
Wales that can never be mised in Yan Dieman's 
Land. Maize, an invaluable grain to the agricul- 
turist, is not grown in Yan Dieman's Land, an<i 
there are no vines nor orange groves in that island. 
The very timber t\v^t is u?:ed for joinery and cabi- 
net work in Yan Dieman's Land is imported from 
New South Wales. 

" But the special advantage which New South 
Wales enjoys over Yan Dieman's Land, is the illi- 
mitable extent of pasture land which it presents to 
the sheep- farmer, or the proprietor of cattle, in 
almost every direction. Yau Dieman's Land is 



VAN DIEMAN*S LAND. 



229 



but a small island, not quite so large as Jreland, 
and a great portion of its surface is absolutely un- 
inhabitable. The continent of New Holland is as 
large as all Europe, and contains an extent of 
available land equal to the whole extent of the 
united territories of several European kingdoms. 
This is a circumstance of no small moment in 
countries which are chiefly valuable for their pas • 
ture, and the riches of which must consist princi- 
pally in their flocks and herds ; for Van Dieman's 
Land will, at no distant period, be overstocked 
with sheep and cattle." 

Mr. Waugh thus speaks — " Van Dieman's Land, 
of which all the talk is at home, is a poor, miser- 
able, expensive place, no more to be compared to 
New South Wales than Scotland is to England, as 
far as the natural fertility of the soil goes. Every 
one who has seen them joins in this opinion ; but 
Van Dieman's Land being the place first touched 
at, the settlers there tell a parcel of lies about the 
place, and keep every one they can to themselves. 
One third of the people in this country first tried 
Van Dieman's Land for a settlement, and left it. 

Tell all who come away by no means to stop 
there — they spend their money, and come hopping 
up here in a week or two pennyless, or next door 
to it. The thing stands to reason, that a compara- 
tively poor and ill occupied conntry never can 
compare to a place where, if all the population of 
Scotland together were to come out at once, they 
would be located on rich land ready for their 
ploughing, or at all events, grazing, an(l then have 
room for all the population of England and ireland 
to come next year and do the same/' 

Lieutenant Breton, after giving the price of pro- 
visions in the two colonies, remarks — From this 
it will easily be perceived how much cheaper the 



230 AUSTRALASIA. 

Decessaties of life are in Sydney ; and house-rent 
is also biober in Hobart Town, so is tbe expeuse 
of liying very far greater. 

^' I know not how to account for there being 
such a difference between tbe two capitals in re- 
gard to affluence ; the settlers in Tasmania, speak- 
ing generally, seem to have gone on quite as well 
as tiiose in Australia ; yet tliere is no comparison 
between the f apparent) fortunes of many of tbe 
ii-babitants of Sydney and of tbose of Hobart Town. 
Even making every possible allowance for tbe 
superior opportunities of realising money which 
tl=e merchants and tradespeople of the former have 
enjoyed, it is still surprising that the disparity 
Siiould be so very considerable. It i^ seen in every- 
thing — style of living, , equipages, and buildings. 

Of all tbe variable clioiates, that of the district 
of Hobart Town is certainly tbe most changeable, 
the mutations being incessant. Heat, cold, rain, 
and sunsliine succeed eacb other with a rapidity 
I never observed in any other part of the world. 
]n winter, these alternations, with tbe addition of 
bail and snow, follow eacli other with equal celerity. 

" On tbe north bide of tbe island tbe snow was of 
considerable deptb, and many days before it dis- 
solved 5 but why tlie cold should be greater there 
than on the south side, is rather inexplicable. 

" Although the climate of the northern part of 
Van Dien^an's Land is mo^t delightful] v salubrious, 
tliat of Hobart Town, from its immediate vicinity 
tn Mount Welliric-ton — on which every cold blast 
from the South Pole seems to stop for fresh orders 
on its journey to tbe southward — is much more 
subject to those frequent and violent transitions 
from summer heat to extreme cold, which are more 
productive of rbeumatisms and toothache than any 
part of Xew South Wales." 



VAN DIEMAn's land. 



231 



Although Yan Dieman's Land is undoubtedly 
greatly superior, in regard to its climate and pro- 
ductions, to any of the North American colonies 
for a respectable family of small capital to settle in, 
and though it is pleasant to bear testimony to its 
prosperity and advancement, yet nothing is ad- 
vanced here beyond the truth, when it is asserted, 
that New South Wales holds out a much better 
prospect to the intending emigrant of moderate 
capitalj the future proprietor of sheep and cattle, 
if not also to the practical agriculturist, or the culti- 
vator of the soil/' — Butler, 

Mr. James, a recent writer on these colonies, 
says — However preferable this island may be in 
many respects, the opportunities are almost gone 
by for making money here by the usual pursuits 
of grazing and agriculture. Land is too dear either 
to purchase or to rent, except in a few situations ; 
and a young man with a little capital will be able 
to do much better with it at Port Philip than in 
any part of Van Dieman's Land, every thing con- 
nected with stock and land having arrived at such 
a high price, that the advantages formerly offered 
to emigrants, with a small capital, going out to Yan 
Dieman's Land to become farmers no longer exist." 



WESTEKX AUSTEALIA: 



OB, 

SWAX RIVER. 

"Western ArsTRAiiA, lying between the paral- 
lels of 31 deg. and 35 deg. 8 min. south latitude, 
and the meridian of 115 deg. and 125 min. east. 
It comprises a line extent of territory, 1280 miles 
long from north to south, and 800 miles broad 
from east to west. The distinguishing features are 
three distinct parallel ranges of primitive moun- 
tains, bordering on the sea-coast, in a north and 
south direction. The highest and most easterly 
has its termination near Kinof Georore's Sound, in 
35 deof. south latitude, and 118 deof. east loncntude : 
the second, called the Darling Range, passes behind 
the Swan River, and meets the sea at Cape Chat- 
ham in 34 deg. 40 min. south latitude, and 115 
deg. 20 min. east longitude ; the thin ridge, which 
is inferior in altitude and extent, has its southern 
boundary at Cape Leuwin, iu 34 deg. 20 min. 
south latitude, and 115 deg. east longitude, dis- 
appearing at Cape Xaturaliste, in the same meri- 
dian, in 33 deer. 30 min. south latitude, and on 
showing itself a^ain at Moresby's Flat -topped Range, 
about lialf way between Swan River and Shark's 
Bay, or about 300 miles northward of Cape Leu- 
win. 



! 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



233 



On these dividing ranges of mountains rise seve- 
ral rivers, which flow east or west, accordino; to 
the dip of the land on either side. The principal 
rivers on the sea- shore being the Swan, Canning, 
Murray, Collie, Preston, and a small stream flow- 
ing into Port Leschenault, the Blackwood, disem- 
boguing into Flinder s Bay ; the Denmark, Kent, 
Hay, and Steeman, on the south coast ; and King's 
Hiver, falling into Kinor George's Sound. On each 
of these rivers settlements have been formed. The 
town of Freemantle has been founded at the en- 
trance of the Swan River; Perth, the seat of 
government, about nine miles inh\nd, on its nortli- 
ern back, and Guilford about seven miles further 
east, at the junction of the stream. Fifty miles 
east of Guilford is the town of York. Augusta 
was founded at Blackwood's River, near Cape 
Leuwin ; and King George's Sf)und, with the 
town of Albany, has been recently attached to the 
Swan River colony. 

The voyage from England to Western Australia 
may be performed in about a month less than the 
voyage to New South Wales, and the homeward 
route, instead of being by the way of Cape Horn, 
is in the opposite direction, by the Cape of Good 
Hope. The nearest islands in the Malay archi- 
pelago are at the distance of two days' sail from 
the northern ports of this colony. Passages to 
Madras have been eflected in twenty- five days, 
and to the Isle of France and China in propor- 
tionately short periods. For the purposes of com- 
mercial intercourse with the countries above men- 
tioned, whether by steam or by sailing vessels, tlie 
position of Western Australia is highly advanta- 
geous. In maritime warfare, the importance of a 
coast which borders the Indian Ocean for 200U 
miles may be easily estimated ; nor is its value ia 



234 



AUSTRALASIA. 



peace uniinporfcant, when it is considered how niiich 
tiie positioD which it occupies may influence the 
navigation of the neighbouring seas. 

It had long been wished that the southern coast 
of Australia sliould be occupied by Great Britain ; 
the fine colony we had succeeded in establishing on 
the eastern coast, under the most adverse circum- 
stances, was a stimulus to the undertaking; and 
the favourable report of Captiiin Stirling, R.N., 
(who explored tlie coast in his Majesty's ship, 
^'Success," in 1.829), to a proposition on the 
pari; of Thomas Peel, Esq., Sir Francis Vincent, 
E. W. Schenley, T. P. Macqueen, Esqrs., and seve- 
ral other gentlemen, to further the views of govern- 
ment in founding a settlement, at little or no ex- 
pense to the mother country. These gentlemen 
offered to provide shipping to carry 10,000 Bri- 
tisii subjects (within four years) from tiie United 
Kingdom to the Swan River, to find tliem in ])ro- 
visions, and every oth,er necessary, and to have 
three small vessels running to and from S^'dney, as 
occasion might require. They estimated the cost 
<'f conveying the einigrants at £30 per head, mak- 
ing a total of £30(^000 ; and they required in 
return that an equivalent should be granted th.em 
in land equal to that amount, and at the rate of 
Is. 6d. per acre, making four million acres ; out of 
which they engaged to provide every male emi- 
grant with no less than 200 acres of land, free of 
rent. 

This proposition was not agreed to by the go- 
vernment, and a project for the formation of a new 
colony was issued from the Colonial Office in 1829. 
It was not to be a penal settlement ; neither did 
the government intend to incur any expense in 
eonveying settlers to the new colony, nor supply 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



235 



them with provisions or other necessaries after 
their arrival there. 

The project was, that snch persons as were to 
arrive in the settlement, hefore the etui of the year 
1838, were to receive, in the order of their arrival, 
allotments of land, free of quit-rent, proportioned 
to the amount of capital they were prepared to in- 
vest in the improvement of land, and of whicii 
capital they were to produce satisfactory proofs to 
the Lieutenant-Governor, at the rate of forty acres 
for every £3 they were y)repnred so to invest. 

Tliose who incurred the expense of taking lahour- 
ing persons were to be entitled to an allotment r.i 
land, at the rate of £15, that is, of 200 acres, for 
the passage of every such labouring person, over 
and above any other investment of capital. In 
the class of labouring classes were included women 
and children ai> jve ten years old. With respect 
to the cinldren (»f labouring people under that age, 
it was proposed to allow forty acres for every such 
child above three years old ; eighty acres for every 
such child above six years old ; and 120 acres for 
every such child above nine and under ten years 
old. The title of tlie land was not to be granted 
in fee-simple, until the settlers had proved, to the 
satisfaction of the Lieutenant-Governor, that the 
sum required (Is. 6d. per acre) had been actually 
expended in some improvement, or in the cul- 
tivation of the land, or in solid improvements, such 
as buildings, roads, or other works of that kind. 

Any land thus allotted, of which a fair propor- 
tion, at least one-fourth, should not have l)een 
brought into cultivation, or otherwise iinproved, to 
the satisfaction of the local goveruiuent, within three 
years of the date of license of reception, was to be 
liable to one further payment of 6d. y)er acre for 
all the land not so cultivated or improved, into 



236 



AUSTRALASIA. 



the public chest of the settlement ; and, at tbe*ex- 
piration of seven years more, so much of the whole 
grant as should remain in an uncultivated or un- 
improved state was to revert absolutely to the 
Crown. And in every grant there was to be con- 
tained a condition that, at any time within ten 
years from the date thereof, the government might 
resume, without compensation, any land not then 
actually cultivated or improved, as before men- 
tioned, which might be required for roads, canals, 
quays, or for the site of pubUc buildings. After 
the year J 830, land was to be disposed of to those 
settlers who might resort to the colony, on such 
conditions as his Majesty's government might de- 
termine. 

Captain Stirling was appointed Lieutenant-Go- 
vernor, with a grant nf 100,000 acres; and Mr. 
Peel was to receive 250,000 acres, on condition of 
taking out 400 emigrants, with liberty to extend the 
grant to 6,000,000 acres, previous to the year 1840, 
by receiving forty acres for every child above three 
years old, eighty fur every chiM above six, up to 
ten, 120 acres, and exceediiio^ that acre, 200 acres, 
for every person conveyed to the colony. Mr. 
Peel had complied with the terms requisite for 
500.000 acres previous to 1836. 

Under these circumstances, early in 1829, a 
number of settlers left England for Swan River, 
where they began to arrive in the month of Au- 
gust, and to locate themselves along the banks of 
the Swan and Canning Rivers, so that, by the end 
of that year, there were in the new colony 850 resi- 
dents, and 440 non-residents ; value of property 
giving claims to grants of land, £41,550 ; number 
of acres actually allotted, 525.000 ; number of 
locations effected, 39 ; cattle 204 ; horses, 57 ; 
sheep, 1096 ; pigs, 106 ; and no fewer than twenty- 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



237 



five shins bad arrived at the settlem(^nt before the 
end of December. 

Such was the commencement of the British co- 
lony of Western Australia. As was to have been 
expected the settlers met with unexpected dijB&cul- 
ties, and great hardships had to be surmounted ; 
the land near the coast, as is generally the case in 
New Holland, w^as found poor and sandy; but 
those who had sufficient enterpri^^e to find out the 
real resources of the country, by penetrating into 
the interior, discovered numerous' fine tracts of 
pastoral and agricultural land. 

As a specimen of what the first settlers had to 
encounter, we will make a few extracts from a 

Narrative of a Voyage to the Swan River," &c. 
Here are the author's own words, on the vessel 
approaching land : — " And what did they (the 
emigrants) see ? A fine river, the verdant banks 
of which refreshed their gaze ? No. Sand in 
every direction, as far as the eye could reach — a 
brilliant white sand, which the children called 
snow, and w^ondered why the trees were green." 
The settlers were landed at Freeman tie, where 
they pitched tents till exploring parties searched 
for land, which, during the authors stay, was 
nowhere to be found wwth the locating. The 
sufierings experienced grew daily more distressing; 
but the greatest annovance was from tiie sand : 
the burnt w^ood of the surrounding fires mixing 
with it, not only filled the shoes, but covered the 
person with a disagreeaVjle black dirty dust." The 
following graphic account is given of a settler's 
family — 

The party consisted of a gentleman, with his 
wife and six children, from two to fourteen years 
of age, with an establishment of a young woman, 
as their own immediate attendant, a practical far- 



238 



AUSTRALASIA. 



nier and his wife, two labouring men, and a boy. 
To how many thousand acres of Land his property 
entitled him, 1 know not, but his grant was to be 
on an extensive scale. He had been lured by the 
tempting bait of providing a fine estate for his 
children, to collect his property, and leave his 
English home. His conduct needs no other com- 
ment than that wdiich tlie mania of the Swan River 
settlement at the time oeca.<ioned. 

In the wood before mentioned^ as near his 
companions of the voyage as possible, he selected a 
spot, rendered convenient by the natural arrange- 
ment of the trees, and threw up his temporary 
abode. it consisted of a large tent or canvass 
covering, sufficient for himself, wife, and children, 
and at a short distance, a smaller teat for his ser- 
vants. 

Round his own dwelling was ranged liis pro- 
perty, consisting of every convenience for settling 
comfortably on his new and extensive estate. Pack- 
ing-cases of all sizes contained the following articles, 
namely, two wooden houses, one of four, and one 
of twelve rooms, furniture of every description for 
both of them ; dairy utensils, farming implements, 
trees, plants, and seeds ; a variety of preserved 
provisions, biscuit, and flour ; fodder for his cat- 
tle ; and sufficient linen and clothing for the whole 
party for two years. I must not omit the addi- 
tion of a good sized plate- chest. 

This detail will give some idea of the barricade 
around him. An opening was left for an entrance, 
over vv'hich two fine dogs kept watch, whilst he 
and bis family reposed on beds on the ground un- 
der the same canvass roof. 

His horses and carts had been of the greatest 
service in bringing his heavy property over the 
sand, but his pretty new carriage stood unused, as 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 239 

a memento of the little to be learned in England of 
the necessaries required in the first formation of a 
colony. Many of his cattle and sheep had strayed 
away, and for tliose which remained, not a blade of 
grass was to be found. 

" With respect to water, the family were much 
inconvenienced for the first days after their arrival, 
but a well was soon sunk to supply the whole en- 
campment ; those used by fonner settlers io the 
wood had been filled in. This well was dug as 
near the dwelling as possible ; but, nevertheless, 
it was toilsome to fetch the water over the sand 
under such a sun. 

" The settler's establishment thus arranged, his 
next consideration was to feed the party as ecooo- 
mically as possible, so as not to encroach too much 
on the store of provisions. Fresh meat was dear, 
and not very good, for cattle and sheep were too 
precious to be killed, unless it was found tliat they 
were famishing for want of herbage. Salted pro- 
visions, therefore, became their almost constant food, 
which rendered the want of milk and vegetables 
the more distressing. The latter privation was a 
great and daily source of complaint, and many 
were the hints and reproaches thrown out against 
the first settlers who had arrived there before them, 
for not having planted and sown seeds around their 
temporary locations. 

" Those who made observations of this kind 
were, by fatal experience, soo'n taught their error ; 
the facility with which water was obtained afforded 
the first instance, it was asserted that a well might 
be dug with hands only ; certain it is, that, by 
scratching away the sand, springs appeared almost 
immediately below the surface in every direction. 
This it was which had destroyed the gardens ; 
several had been formed on different parts ; plants 



240 



AUSTRALASIA. 



had sprung up, looked green, but died off, rotten 
at the root. 

The settler having forwarded an estimate of his 
property to the Governor, his next step was to 
present himself to his Excellency, to receive a spe- 
cification of his grant of land. The Governors 
residence w^as at Perth, the capital of the Swan 
River establishment, sixteen miles distant from 
Freemantle. Hither he arrano^ed to go by water, 
calculating on an absence of three days from his 
family, allowing one day for going, one for an in- 
terview with his Excellency, and the third for re- 
turning. He arrived at Perth, and arranged every 
thing according to his wishes, but it was not till 
the fourth day that he landed at Freemantle, de- 
tained by the uncertainty of the wind and tide of 
the river. One boat w^as three days in returning 
only ; coasting, landing, and again renewing the 
attempt. 

" To examine the specified grant was the settler s 
next step, which was more or less difficult to ac- 
complish, according to the extent of its distance 
from other located spots. His horse and cart could 
not pass over such ground as he had to traverse, 
so that all the necessaries he required for food and 
rest had to be carried by himself, there being no 
human habitations on the road. 

" The anxiety felt by his family during his ab- 
sence may naturally be imagined; and on his re- 
turn from his perilous expedition he was joyfully 
greeted by all. The grant he had visited he did 
not approve, and, therefore, he did not accept, 
thinking it better to wait till good land could be 
found, than to settle on that which would not 
yield him a sufficient produce to recompense him 
for his labour. 

" 1 shall never forget paying a visit to his tent 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



241 



one morning, a little before eight o'clock. The 
family were seated at breakfast ; a clear space on 
one side had been newly strewn with green rushes 
to cover the sand ; in the centre was placed the 
table, which, as they had unpacked sufficient for 
immediate use, was laid with a clean white cloth, 
and the usual comforts of the morning repast. The 
mother, who in England had ever been accustomed 
to a good establishmert of servants, had risen at 
six o'clock, and prepared the cakes before them. 
She was making tea, nicely dressed, her large straw 
bonnet, lined with green, shading her from the sun. 
The children sat orderly around, looking beautifully 
neat and clean ; I need not say that the husband's 
eyes beamed with dehght — they could not do 
otiierwise — although they were occasionally clouded 
by melancholy forebodings. The picture was en- 
chanting, bat it could not last, and, like all earthly 
happiness its brilliancy was soon to be overcast by 
a temporary gloom. The noon repast again brought 
them together, but the fatlier was wearied by a 
fruitless search after strayed cattle, and the whole 
party were more or less covered with a black sand, 
the sight of which could scarcely be borne, although 
is was almost useless to remove it. 

As our stay drew towards a close, we each felt 
an increasing interest and anxiety as to the welfare 
and success of those to be left behind. During the 
whole of our seven weeks' residence there, we had 
invariably fine weather, until two nights before our 
departure, when a heavy shower poured down in 
torrents, giving us some idea of the sufferings to 
which the first settlers there, before us, had been 
exposed during the rainy season. Canvass was not 
proof against such a ])Owerfal torrent; and the 
family I have described, not having quite conipleted 
their arrangements for removal, sheltered theiu- 
M 



242 



AUSTRALASIA. 



selves under umbrellas within the tent, putting the 
children under the taldes !" Such are a few of the 
inconveniences that may be expected in the settling 
of most new colonies. 

It appears from King's surveys, that the coast 
of the colony within the tropics is fronted with in- 
dentations, bays, straits, and islands, and abounds 
in the finest harbours imaginable. The rise and 
fall of tide in some places amounts to thirty-five 
feet, affording opportunities thereby for building 
docks, or for laying ships on shore, without con- 
siderable expense. The existence of an interior 
sea, or of great rivers, connected with some of the 
inlets wdiich were not fully explored by King, re- 
mains a problem as yet undetermined. Although 
the nature of the country on that coast is but little 
known, there is reason to believe that portions of it 
suitable to cultivation may be found. It possesses 
one peculiarity in point of seasons, of considerable 
value, and that is the occurrence of the boisterous 
westerly monsoon, accompanied by clouds and 
rain, at the hottest period of the year, from Novem- 
ber to March. 

The principal ports in the south-western parts of 
the colony are those in Cockburn Sound, and in 
King George's Sound. The first of these is an ex- 
cellent port, but its entrance is encumbered by 
rocks, and it is not accessible with safety to large 
vessels, while 4here is not an effective establish- 
ment of pilots and beacons. King George's Sound • 
possesses all the qualities which constitute a good 
harbour. Its position, however, being to eastward 
and to leeward of Cape Seuwin, in the vicinity of 
which strong v/ester!y gales prevail, this circum- 
stance detracts from the value of its other qualifica- 
tions. Shark's Bay abounds in safe anchorages, and 
affords, as well as Doubtful Island Bay, secure ac- 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



243 



cess to the districts in their immediate Ticinity. 
Harbours for boats and small coasting vessels exist 
near the entrance of Peel's Inlet, Port Lescbenault, 
Augusta, Nornalup, Torbay, CoUingwood Bay, and 
Cape Ricbe. 

One of the most remarkable peculiarities on the 
soutb- western coast of the settlement is the fre- 
quent occurrence of estuaries or inlets of the sea, 
having narrow and shallow entrances. Between 
King George's Sound and Swan Hiver there are no 
fewer than ten of these. Tliey are usually from 
five to ten miles in lenorth, and from two to three 
in breadth. They serve as the receptacles of the 
streams in their vicinity, and will afford hereafter 
water communication to the inhabitants. In the 
summer season the water in them is salt, but be- 
comes fresh after the return of the rains. 

In the interior no lakes- of any extent have, as 

yet, been discovered ; but salt mar^ihes and salt pools 

of small diameter, are not unfrequent. 

The absence of considerable mountain ranores for- 
. . . ® 

bids the chance of finding any considerable rivers 

of a permanent character; and it is somewhat re- 
markable that one of the largest rivers known, 
whose course is not less than 200 miles, disappears 
entirely as a stream, and ceases to run long before 
the end of the dry season. \n the country situated 
to the south of the Swan River, there are, how- 
ever, streams wdiich continue to run throughout the 
year, as may be instanced in the cases of the Mur- 
ray, Harvey, Brunswick, Preston, Capel, and 
Donelly ; and on the south coast, where tlie country 
is more hilly, and the rains later, mill-streams exist 
in great numbers, and fortunately those districts 
contain an inexhaustible suj)ply of the finest timber. 
The chance of discovering a river of great magni- 
tude on the north-west coast aj)pears to be 



244 



AUSTRALASIA. 



strengtbened by the non-occurrence of any con- 
siderable stream in those other parts which have as 
yet been explored. 

The supply of water for domestic purposes in all 
those districts, which have been occupied, appears 
to be sufficient. In the district of York incon- 
venience has been found on some farms from the 
difficulty of finding water at first, but these incon- 
veniences have been usually overcome by the dis- 
covery of springs on further inspection. The 
country at the distance of one hundred miles from 
the western coast does not appear to enjoy its share 
of the rain brought in by the wes^terly winds, and 
it is to be apprehended that a deficiency of a sup- 
ply of water during tlie dry season will be found 
in that quarter when it comes to be settled. 

The wet season commences with light showers in 
April, which continue to increase in number and 
force throughout May, June, and July, and from 
that period to decrease till they cease altogether, in 
the month of Noven^ber, when the dry weather 
begins. These two seasons, with an intermediate 
spring following the conclusion of each, embrace 
the circle of the year. It is usual to call the wet 
season the winter, and the dry season the summer, 
but neither of thetn has the character of the corres- 
ponding season in Europe. The extreme drought 
and heat of an Australian summer render it the less 
agreeable portion of the year ; whilst the winter, 
with the exception of intervals of stormy weather, • 
is only sufficiently cold to be pleasant. 

The prevailing winds in the seas adjacent to 
Cape Sen win is from the westward throughout the 
year. On the coast, however, land and sea breezes 
take place with great regularity during the sum- 
mer. In the winter season, gales of wind from the 
north-west and south-west are very frequent, and 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



245 



are usually accompanied by heavy falls of rain. 
At such periods, the atmosphere is charged with 
moisture to a considerable degree, and the quantity 
of rain that has been ascertained to fall at King 
George's Sound, in the coarse of six winter months, 
equals the quantity experienced in the westera 
counties of England. Tlie atmosphere in the sum- 
mer season retains so little moisture, that none but 
hardy and fibrous plants can withstand the drought. 
The air is so clear, and the reflection of solar heat 
so great, that the thermometer occasionally reaches 
in the shade near the ground 105 degrees, but the 
effect at those times upon European constitutions is 
not injurious. 

This can only be accounted for, under so great a 
heat, by the peculiar dryness of the air, and tlie 
regular succession of cool nights after the warmest 
days. The experience of the last eight years has 
established in the minds of the colonists the full 
belief that the climate of the settlement is in a 
peculiar degree conducive to health and to comfort; 
but it is not equally so to the growth of those vege- 
table products which flourish to great advantage in 
moister climates. With reference to this point of 
difference between England and Western Australia, 
it is perhaps fortunate that it does not resemble the 
former country, but may rather be considered, in 
temperature, as a supplement to the southern dis- 
tricts of the United Kingdom, and as affording 
every range of temperature, between the Land's 
End and equatorial regions, for the production of 
commodities which cannot be raised in the colder 
atmosphere of the mother country. 

The salubrity of the climate of Western Aus- 
tralia is abundantly testified both by the Colonial 
Surgeon and the Military Surgeon, and this under 
all the circumstances of exposure, a privation to 



248 



AUSTRALASIA. 



which many are r.ecessarlly subject in a new settle- 
ment. The only ailments mentioned, as in any 
degree incidental to the climate, are a slight in- 
flammatory affection of the eyelids, on the part of 
those who sleep exposed to the night air ; and a 
slight attack of howel complaint, hy those who 
neglect warm clothing in the change of the year, 
or who are addicted to intemperaiice. This salu- 
brity is attributed to the peculiar dryness of the 
atmosphere, and its freedom from damp exhala- 
tions, noxious vapours, or unwholesome fogs. If 
this state of things was generally known, and the 
low per centage of deaths was duly considered, it 
would appear but reasonable that they should 
operate strongly in favour of those who desire to 
effect insurances upon their lives. It may be very 
important to state, that the application of vaccine 
matter has, after many failures, been attended with 
complete success ; and vaccination may now be 
considered as established in Western Australia. 

The whole occupied portion of the territory 
appears to rest on a granitic base ; rocks of that 
description having l)een found to exist in every 
district which has been as yet explored. In the 
neighbourhood of Doubtful Island Bay, the granite 
assumes the stratified form of gneis ; and as red 
sandstone is found on the north-west coast, and 
tertiary formations on the shore of the Australian 
Bight, it is probable that the general dip of the 
country is in a direction a little to the north of east. 
To the south of the 3Jst degree of latitude there 
are no mountain ranges of any great altitude, the 
highest yet known being that of Koik veunneruf, 
near King George's Sound, which attains to the 
height of 3,500 feet. On the primitive base of 
the country none of the secondary formations have 
!>een found to exist. Basaltic rocks are not, how- 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



24T 



ever, unfrequent in alaiost every district in the 
couiitry ; and in one position, at Geographe Bay, 
there is a cohimiiar formation, resembling in its 
character that which exists on the north coast of 
Ireland. The principal range of hills extends in a 
northerly direction from the south coast near Cape 
Chatham, for at least three hundred miles. The 
only varieties of rock which have been foun'd on 
this granite range are occasional portions of roofing 
slate, and of indurated clay ; but extending from 
the western base of these hills towards the sea, 
upon an average breadth of about twenty miles, 
there is a low and tolerably level plain of diluvial 
origin, which bears the marks of having been 
covered by the sea at some remote period. The 
portion of this plain nearest the sea presents lime- 
stone hills, which have a slight covering of meagre 
sandy soiL. The remainder varies from sand to 
€lay^ with the exception of the lands in the imme- 
diate vicinity of rivers, which have been affected 
and rendered rich by the overflowing of the 
streams. 

The mineral substances heretofore discovered, 
are lime, marl, selenite, slate, siiicious and calca- 
reous petrifactions, magnetic iron- ore, peacock 
iron -ore, chromate of lead, crystals of quartz. 
The very small portion of the territory which has 
been inspected being almost entirely of a primitive 
description, a larger list of minerals could not 
be expected ; but when time shall permit the 
further examination of the northern districts, of 
the red sandstone formation, it is not unlikely that 
mineralogical discoveries may be effected. The 
discovery of copper ore in the vicinity of Camden 
Bay, by Captaiq^ King, corroborates this ex- 
pectation. 

The surface of the country, generally, is covered 



248 



AUSTRALASIA. 



with those substances which are technically called 
earths, in contradistinction to soils. Of the latter, 
as far at least as relates to those of a vegetable 
origin, a very small portion exists, and that only 
on moist grounds. The extreme drought of the 
climate and the summer conflagrations appear to 
prevent the growth of succulent plants, as well as 
any great accumulation of soil from decayed yege- 
tation. But although the country is nat remark- 
able for richness of soil, it is favourable in other 
respects to farming purposes. In its natural state, 
there is scarcely any part which does not produce 
some description of plant, and its defects seem to be 
of that class which art, aided by climate, will be 
enabled hereafter to overcome. 

It is always difficult to form a just estimate of 
the value of soils in new countries, and it is hazard- 
ous to give opinions on which the settlers' operations 
may be founded. The reports and statements of 
the explorers must, therefore, be viewed with much 
caution, and as liable to error, even where every 
wish has been felt to observe closely and report 
truly. 

Upon a general view of that portion of the terri - 
tory which has been examined, it is but justice to 
state, that a large portion of its surface, extending 
probably to three-fifths of the whole, is poor and 
comparatively unprofitable, and unlikely to be cul- 
tivated or yield any return, except in timber, until 
a dense population and low wages, aided by abund- 
ance of cattle, shall enable the farmer to bring it 
into use. 

The best districts at present known are those on 
the Avon, the Hotham, the Williams, Arthur, 
Beaufort, and South East Rivers ; together with 
the portions of country adjacent to the Swan, the 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



24?) 



Murray, the Harvey, Brunswick, Preston, Capel, 
and Vasse. 

It is to be remembered, however, that these 
remarks apply only to the very small part of this 
vast country which has been as yet explored, and 
that in the progress of the settlenient circumstances 
are continually arising to give value to lands, 
which, while wages are high, and roads wanting, 
are not of the slightest value. 

The following towns have been laid out and 
allotments granted : — Freemantle, Perth, Guild- 
ford, Albany, Augusta, Kelinscott, York, Peel- 
town, Busselton, and Kin^stovv^n. 

In this part of New Holland the food of the 
natives embraces a great variety of articles. In 
the estuaries and the rivers, and on the coast there 
is abundance of fish at certain periods of the year ; 
and kangaroo of various sorts, together with opos- 
sums, dalgerts, and other small animals are ob- 
tained in considerable nuinbers ; roots and gums of 
several kinds are nho used by them, and birds' 
eggs, lizards, frogs, grubs, and cray fish from the 
swamps are also resorted to as varieties, or used in 
cases of urgent want. Tiiey do not appear to be 
reduced at any time to any great difiiculties in 
procuring subsistence, but their habits preclude 
the possibility of keeping any accumulated stock 
of the necessary articles, and therefore their time 
and attention are almost constantly occupied in the 
pursuit of their daily food. 

As the natives have no fixed habitation, and do 
not practice any art tending to increase the supply 
which nature has provided, it is probable that 
their numbers are strictly limited by this circum- 
stance, and tliat they have been long stationary at 
their present amount. 

The law which forbids any further increase is 
M 2 



250 



ArSTKALASIA. 



the cause, moreover, of their dispersion throu2:iiOiit 
the territory, and prevents them from entering 
into any larger confederacies than tliose which are 
necessary for rendering most successful their hunt- 
ing and fishing occupations. The tribes, as they 
are called, usually comprise about 120 persons, of 
all ages, and of both sexes. These are connected 
for the most part by relationship of blood, although 
it is by no means uncommon to procure wives, or 
to adopt strangers from neighbouring tribes. The 
only species of control or government under which 
they live is founded on tiie influence of the strong 
over the weak, and the deference whit^di is showa 
to the aged, and to the pretended powers of the 
magician or doctor. 

Certain nsages established by custom are fre- 
quently appealed to as rules of conduct. Of these 
the principal relate to the riglit of individuals to ,^ 
certain portions of hunting-gi-ound, derived by in-' 
heritance from their ance-tors. to the practice of 
boring the cartilage of the nose of the young men 
on their admission to the rights of manhood, and 
to the retaliation for injuries received, which all 
are enjoined, as well as in titled to seek, whether 
the ofiender belono: to the same or to a neisih- 
bouring community. It has been found very dif- 
ficult to ascertain the exact locality or tribe to 
which individuals belong, in consequence of al- 
liances which are very frequent amongst individuals 
of different tribes. This species of brotherliood, 
by adoption, carries with it the obligation of be- 
coming parties to each other's quarrels, and al- 
though it appears to be followed by the advantage 
of mutual protection, as far as su'?h individuals are 
concerned, it gives rise at the same time to many 
hostilities. The intercourse between tribes is sel- 
dom of a friendly character, but it is remarkable 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA, 



251 



that their conflicts seldom extend to the loss of 
lives. Almost continually engaged as they are, • 
in feuds arising out of the invasion of each other's 
territory, or tlie abduction of each other's women, 
it might be expected that when they meet to fight, 
the weaker party would be exterminated; whereas 
these contests, after a great deal of clamour and a 
few unimportant wounds, generally end in the 
murder of a child, or of a female, by mutual con- 
sent admitted as an atonement for the offence or 
ground of quarrel. Independent of these occa- 
sional warlike meetings of tribes, almost every 
native is under an engagement to avenge, at a 
convenient opportunity, the death of some departed 
friend, or an if. suit previously offered to himself. 
This purpose, wliich he cannot forego without dis- 
credit, gives rise to acts of the greatest treachery, 
and not unfrequently ends in the surprise and 
sudden death of some individual belonging to the 
same tribe with the avenger, or some of his neigh- 
bours. They rarely, therefore, sleep a second night 
at the same place ; the spear seldom quits the 
hand of the man from boyhood till death ; and 
they become accustomed to witness, endure, and 
practise the greatest outrages. 

The personal qualities of some members of this 
peculiar race are superior to the condition in which 
they live. A few of them are remarkable for 
symmetry of form and countenance, and the natural 
intelligence of many appears to be in the highest 
degree acute ; the greater part, however, are, from 
hardship of life and bodily injuries, disgusting 
specimens of the human race, and deformity of old 
age, whether in the men or women, is usually ac- 
companied by a concentration of all the vicious 
propensities to which their usages give rise. 
' In their intercourse with the whites the natives 



t52 



AUSTRALASIA. 



accomniodato themselves with astonishing readiaess 
to the language, the habits, and even the weak- 
nesses of their new friends. They are remarkably 
cheerful, and make themselves useful in many em- 
ployments ; but they are not to be relied upon, 
for in a great many instances it has been found 
that, after living for months in the house of a set- 
tler, they have been all the time employed by the 
rest of the tribe as spies, for the purpose of con- 
veying intelligence as to the best points of attack 
on life or property. Living in a constant state of 
warfare, they are bold, crafty, and persevering, 
and lay their plans with judgment equal to the 
vigour with which they put them into execution. 
With such qualities as these they would be too 
powerful as a nation for the present number of 
colonists, if it were not for their mistrust of each 
other. They cannot combine their efforts nor act 
on a concerted plan, for if they were to do so, 
there are many of them who would readily betray 
the rest, and voluntarily lead the whites to their 
retreat, for the sake of a few pounds of flour. It 
is impossible to give any accurate account of their 
numbers ; 750 have been known to visit Perth 
from the districts surrounding it to the extent of 
forty miles each way. The nearest estimate of 
the population appears to be that which assigns 
one native to each portion of ground of two square 
miles. 

The white population of Western Australia was, 
in 1834, 1510; in 1837, 2154; and in 1848, 
4460, exhibiting an increase during ten years of 
107 per cent. 

Agricultural and pastoral pursuits are the lead- 
ing occupations in this country ; but the further 
extension of tillage is much impeded by the want 
of labourers, and the very high prices demanded 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



253 



compel those who principally depend on hired work- 
men in rural occupations to seek the means of em- 
ploying their capital in pursuits less dependent on 
the whims and caprices of tlie labouring class. la 
consequence of this, the raising of wheat is princi- 
pally confined to those families, the numbers of 
which are sufficient for the work of the farm on 
which they live ; and th^ higher class of settlers 
invest their capital chiefly in the rearing of stock. 
The adaptation of this country to wheat growing 
may be, however, considered as proved beyond a 
doubt, but this article cannot be profitably culti- 
vated for exportation until there is a greater 
command of labour. The culture of the vine, fig, 
peach, and melon tribe, has been carried to a very 
considerable extent, and if ever it should be de- 
sirable for the mother country to possess a wine- 
growing colony, the soils and seasons of the country 
afford reasonable ground for anticipating a success- 
ful issue to such a speculation. 

The return of profit on sheep-farming may be 
estimated, in the gross, at 75 per cent, per annum. 
The rate is undoubtedly higher, where the price 
of meat is high, and the value of land low, than it 
can be in New South Wales and Yan Dieman's 
Land. After deducting the herding, and allowing 
a reasonable rent for the land on which the flock 
is maintained, a net profit remains to the owner of 
at least 50 per cent, per annunn. Such a profit, 
combined with tlie means of extending indefinitely 
the number of sheep-far uis, must attract, in the 
course of a few years, to this branch of investment, 
a large amount of capital. At the present time, 
the absence of funds within the colony applicable 
to such purposes, and the prejudices which unjustly 
exist in respect of its capabilities, together with 
the mishaps attendant on the importation of sheep 



254 



AUSTRALASIA. 



from other places, impose obstacles to its extension, 
apart from natural increase. 

Horses and cattle may be expected to multiply. 
Independent of those belonging to the settlers, there 
are known to exist four or live wild herds, in dif- 
ferent parts of tlie colony, which have maintained 
themselves, without protection, against the natives 
for several years, and a^e rapidly increasing their 
numbers. 

Looking to the small number of colonists, and 
to the few years they have been established in this 
country, the extent of land in cultivation, and 
the number of useful animals in their possession, 
are highly satisfactory. The settlement has been 
for some years enabled to feel that it has arrived 
at the point of producing its ow^n subsistence, and 
is independent of other places for the support of its 
inhabitants. 

The arts connected with building and agricul- 
tural implement making employ a considerable 
number of the workmen of the colony, and it is, in 
consequence, better provided with the products of 
the first named of those arts than is usual in coun- 
tries so recently occupied. Many convenient and 
substantial houses have been erected in the towns, 
and by the employment thereby given to artizans, 
a large number have been induced to remain, who 
would otherwise have quitted the settlement. Car- 
penters, masons, plasterers, blacksmiths, painters, 
and other artizans have hitherto received high 
wages ; but some of them are beginning to turn 
their thoughts to rural occupations. Being usually 
superior in education and in steadiness of conduct 
to the labourers in general, the closs to which they 
belong is one of the most valuable in colonies, and 
therefore it is not to be regretted that a very large 
sum has been invested in buildings, by the outlay 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



255 



of which tkey have been induced to settle in this 
country. 

There are three corn^naills propelled by water, 
two wind-mills, and three horse-mills, situated at 
convenient distances for the settlers on the Swan 
and Canning Rivers, and in Perth, and capable of 
manufacturing into flour more corn than is at pre- 
sent grown, or than the^ colony requires. The 
charge for grinding, kc. is very high, from the 
circumstance of the mills not being fully employed, 
and the great cost of erecting and superintending 
such works in a new colony. Competition may be 
anticipated, from the recent arrival of a corn and 
saw-mill, with a powerful steam-engine. There 
is a horse-mill in the York district, and the erec- 
tion of others contemplated. 

Hand and horse thrashing machines are used to 
a limited extent. 

Three public breweries are established in Perth, 
and an extensive malting house on the Swan River. 
Distillery and vvune-making ha>|p been attempted 
on a very limited scale, so that the colonists depend 
almost entirely on importation for their supplies of 
these articles, as well as candles, soap, and leather. 

Brick earth is generally abundant, and bricks 
and lime of excellent quality are manufactured. 
The colonial shingles are a good substitute for 
slates, and nearly alike in appearance. The me- 
chanics and artizuis settled here are fully employed 
at higher wages than in England. The following 
branches of business are ^still open to enterprise, 
with every probability of success : — ; 

Cultivation and manufacture of tobacco, and 
opium, and hops. 

Flax and hemp, with linseed, castor and olive 
oil. 

Wine, as the vine is now extensively cultivated. 



256 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Coarse woollens and hosier v. 
Pottery and tile-iiiakiug. 
Quarrying. 

Leather, parchment, and glue-making. 
Agricultural mechanist and edge-tool makers. 
Cabinet-making, with turning and French 
polishing. 

The' substance called tchina-clay is abundant in 
this colony. 

Since the earliest discovery of this coast, it has 
been known to abound in Tarious descriptions of 
fish. The Malays have carried on. fur at least 
two hundred years, an extensive and profitable 
trepang and tortoise-shell fishery on the north-west 
coast. Dampier, Bandin, and King, at different 
periods, have reported the existence of astonishing 
numbers of whales in the adjacent seas, and expe- 
rience, since the establishuient of the colony, and 
still more recently, since whale fishing commenced 
in its bays, confirms the reports of the earliest 
navigators. This ^abundance of fi?h is probably 
connected with a bank which adjoins the shore 
from the northern to the southern extremity of the 
colony. On this shoal, which extends for thirty 
or forty miles from the land, and which is com- 
posed for the most part of calcareous or coraline 
substances, there exist several varieties of edible 
fish, which admit of being cured for exportation. 
! The various descriptions of fishing which may 
be carried on under such circumstances, must 
eventually employ a large amount of capital, and a 
great number of seamen.* Markets for their pro- 
duce are open in China as well as in Europe. 

There are four whaling associations in Western 
Australia. These are not as yet upon an efiicient 
footing, but their success has been great enough to 
insure their future improvement and extension. 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



257 



Fishing, for the purposes of food, gives profitable 
employment to a few boatmen. 

Boat-building is carried on with much success 
by two establishments, and some of the native 
woods are found to be well suited to those pur- 
poses. Mr. Trigg communicated his practical ex- 
perience of the nature and quality of the indigenous 
timber of Western Australia to the local govern- 
ment, from which we rrfike the following extracts : 

" The Shea oak is not abundant, although in suf- 
ficient quantities for our own use for many years 
to come ; it is far preferable for shingles to any 
imported from Yan Dieman's Land. As an evi- 
dence, the offices built by me for the government, 
and shingled with imported shingles, the latter 
end of 1829, and beginning of 1830, are completely 
destroyed by decay and white ant, whilst the room 
adjoining my workshop, shingled with native 
shingles shortly after, is as tight as ever, and, 
according to all appearance, likely to continue so 
for many years to come. The i«a]K)gany growing 
about Perth is, generally speaking, dark, hard, and 
heavy. This is the sort Captain Freeman, con- 
trary to my advice, took to England, and of course^ 
failed in his speculation, being, I consider, the 
worst sample to be found, although, if well assorted, 
some of excellent quality for building can be ob- 
tained. As an evidence, I refer to the floor of the 
commissariat store, all of which was cut about two 
miles from Perth, out of the largest timber, the 
small being carefully avoided, on account of wast- 
ing. This floor was laid early in 18;j5, and there 
is not the least apparent shrinking, except in a 
few unseasoned boards, and when we consider its 
size fone hundred feet by forty), the great drought 
and heat of our summers, contrasted with the great 
moisture of winter, as also its nearness to the large 



258 



AUSTRALASIA. 



shingled roof, Avhilst a contiiiual draught rushes 
through an uuceiled room of fourteen feet pitch 
beneath, it is evident to me it po-sesses properties 
pecuUarly adapting it for all purposes where con- 
traction and expaiis^ion is an object. I argue from 
this, also, it is a wood of great durability. Some, 
as I have before biuted. is very light as to weight 
and colour ; indee-.i^ thm are generally combined, 
and work remarkably wall. This we generally 
use for sashes, doors, mouldinofs, cabinet-work, and 
for all purposes requirincr t^trenoth with lightness. 
It is far preferable to tlie Sydney cedar, wliich I 
Lave used for the same purposes, possessing all its 
good qualities as to ease of conversion, being much 
stronger, much better in appearance, and differing 
but little in weight ; but it is not alone for carpen- 
ter's, joiner s. and cabinet-work it is desirable, but 
also for boat- building, possessing all the phabiUty 
required therein ; and, so far as my knowledge 
goes, together with all I can collect, it is seldou), 
if ever, touched 1^ worms ; at least, it has never 
been in our nine years experience. There is a 
large flat, built for me eight years ago, planked 
Vvdth mahogany, not unfrequently lying for months 
under water, and not the least appearance of worms 
in it, and to show that we have them here as 
well as in other parts of the world, the piles of the 
Freemantle jetty, made from shipwrecked timber 
(oak), built some time after, are completely de- 
stroyed by the-e insects. The mahogany, there- 
fore, may be considered valuable for other pur- 
poses than domestic; I n)ean for skip-building; 
and then the question w^ould arise as to quantity, 
and here 1 think we must leave the Ssvan and 
Canning, and go to the dense forest of the moun- 
tains. Some time back, I examined the timber 
from Green Mount to Eushy Stream, and although 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



259 



there is much valuable timber, beginning a little 
below Mahogany Creek, still 1 do not consider it 
thickly wooded until near the aforesaid stream, 
and there it is thick indeed, so much so, it would 
be n3 small difficulty to fell the trees clear of each 
other. This range or belt of timber may be, as 
near as I can guess, four miles through, running 
parallel with the mountains, rather approaching 
the sea to the southward. If twenty miles north of 
the York Road, and 120 south, be taken, at which 
points the timber has been found the same (beyond 
which I have no account, although it probably 
ceases only with the yet undiscovered range of moun- 
tains, differing in quahty ordy as it passes through 
the different degrees of latitude), I say, taking 
the known length to be 140 miles, by four 
the depth, and squaring by 640, the number of 
acres in a mile, gives 358,400 acres. I have some- 
where read (years back) it requires fifteen acres 
of thickly wooded timber of English forest to build 
a line-of-battle ship (I write from memory alone) ; 
I will therefore say twenty of this, which will 
give twice the quantity of timber in cubical con- 
tents of any English forest land I have seen or 
heard of on the same area ; it gives timber enough 
to build 17,920 hne-of- battle ships, or twenty 
British navies, supposing cutters, brigs, &;c. to re- 
quire as much as the af )re^*aid ships. 1 have been 
led to these observations because it has been said 
it is not a good timber country. I cannot speak 
so positively as to the qualities of this timber, 
never having used any ; but from its appearance 
on the block, freeness of growth, and resemblance 
in grain, 1 think it equal to the finest samples of 
the Swan and Carming. Taking the average, the 
length may be sixty -five feet, many much longer^ 
and, Vi^ithout a knot or branch in all that length ; 



260 



AUSTRALASIA. 



they may be said to be monuments of Xature. for 
they are nearly equal in size all the way up. 
Some objection has been raised to our exporting 
the same, on account of the distance. I do not 
think it a serious objection, for under our great 
vrant of labour, and consequent expense of ship- 
ment, I should have no ohjection to be bound 
(were I inclined to go aD;ain into business) to ship 
any quantity over 300 loads^ in four, six, and eight 
inch plank, from the farthest point of road, at the 
rate of £6. 10s. per load (fifty cubic feet), and in 
some places, I have no doubt, it could be shipped 
much cheaper My observations respecting the 
gums, of which there are several sorts, must be 
more limited, not having that practical knowledge 
I have of the mahogany. The red may be used 
to advantage for plates, rails, and shingles : in- 
deed, for shingles I think it will become an article 
of export, but being subject to gum- veins, it is not 
so desirable for boards or planks. 1 have thought 
it might be used for staves, if well assorted. The 
flooded or blue gum is rather a fine grained 
wood, and works well, but posse-sing no peculiar 
qualities, except, perhaps, for wheelwrii^hts, work- 
ing better than the white gum of Mount Eliza, 
which may be considered nest in value to the 
mahogany. When season^^d it is very hard, wears 
smooth, and can be rather torn than split to pieces. 
It is valuable for millwrio^hts. and I think it would 
be found valuable for sheaves of blocks. I have 
no doubt it would answer all the purposes to which 
lignum vit^e is applied, and I suppose much cheaper, 
from its size and abundance. 1 sent a piece to the 
Isle of France, by Captain Pace, intended for the 
sheaves of the largest blocks ; it was cut crossways 
to the proper thickness. Tiiey were satisfied as to 
the grain and quality, but could not keep it froiu 



WESTF.RN AUSTRALIA. 



261 



casting ; nor do I wonder, being at a season when 
all the sap is in it, and converted without proper 
means being used to season the same. This tree 
grows to an enormous size and height to the south- 
ward. The tewart of the Yasse and Augusta is 
the same wood, fronri the sample I have seen, 
though more free in growth, pt^rhaps, from the 
nature of the soil. I have no doubt it may be 
used for some purposes in shipbuilding, for keels, 
kelsons, beams, or any purpose where great length 
and great strength are required, and weight is not 
so much an object ; but I do not consider it good 
for planking, at least not equal to the mahogany, 
its gravity being much greater, and certainly not 
so good working. I have some lying by my saw- 
pit, thrown by as waste, which has been exposed 
to the sun of five summers, without iigury, except 
from natural defects, and very partially touched 
with the white ants, although, at times, they may 
be said to swarm there. I am persuaded these 
insects will take every other wood before mahogany 
and this gum, and the reason I say so is, on ex- 
amining the v/aste pieces of boards thrown from 
my workshop, deal was the first eaten, other im- 
ported woods, whether from England or the other 
colonies next, the banksia, wattle, and red gum of 
our colony next, the white gum very partially, 
and the mahogany still less, merely superficially, 
but never destroyed ; indeed, I think there is some 
(jf the mahogany they will never touch until time 
has destroyed its properties." 

The operations of the miller, baker, brewer, 
farmer, shoemaker, tailor, &c., are extending, and 
the community, although limited, suffers no serious 
inconvenience from the absence of any of the arts 
and trades which administer to the primary wants 
of man. 



262 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The number of persons exclusively engaged in 
the civil, judicial, clerical, and militiiry branches of 
the public service, amounts to 160. In otlier 
public offices, independent of the government, sucb 
as printers, innkeepers, &:c. there are employed 
about sixty. As this description of persons, how- 
ever necessary their labours may be to the general 
welfare, do not ccmtribute directly to the produce 
of commodities, their number, together with that 
of their families, must be deducted from the gross 
population, in comparing the productive classes 
vrith the products of labour. 

The internal consumption of commodities having 
been of late years, in a great measure, limited to 
the products of the land, and the importation of 
foreign articles having decreased in proportion, the 
mercantile part of the cornmunity has had much 
reason to complain of the want of business in 
general. The traffic in tea, sugar, spirits, clothing, 
harness, earthenware, glass, and ammunition, has 
been carried on at very high prices, and with great 
profit. Traders being a class of persons w^hose 
capital is always available for any speculation 
which may offiir, and colonial farmers being ahvays 
in need of advances, the mercantile men of the 
community, possessed of means, have frequent 
opportunities of laying them out to advantage, 
either by monopolising particular commodities, or 
by giving credit at high interest ; they have, there- 
fore, had their full share of the general prosperity, 
even in the absence o( any considerable demand for 
merchandise. They are now looking forward to an 
increase in the exports of the colony as the pro- 
bable cause of the extension of business. 

The question of establishing a bank in Western 
Australia became a sul-ject of deep interest through- 
out the community, from an early period after the 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



263 



foundation of the colony ; but it was apparent to 
those who were most competent to form a correct 
judgment, that so long as tlie settlement depended 
on foreign supplies for the principal articles of con- 
sumption, without the means of a corresponding 
export, it must be constantly drained of specie, and 
no permanent circulation of notes could be main- 
tained. From the report drawn up by the Agri- 
cultural Society for the year 1836, it appeared 
that tillage and the rearing of live stock had then 
made such considerable progress that all the actual 
necessaries of life for the existing population were 
produced within the colony ; consequently from 
that period foreign remittances w^ould be limited 
to payments for such articles of manufacture, of 
comfort or of luxury, as might be imported ; to 
meet which, the bills drawn by the local govern- 
ment for the maintenance of the civil and military 
establishment, those drawn by private individuals 
from resources in Europe, and the small but annu- 
ally increasing exportation of wool, oil, &c., were 
considered fully adequate. 

This fortunate change in the circumstances of 
the colony, and the great inconvenience felt from 
the system of barter, which had been generally 
adopted, in consequence of the deficiency of the 
circulatinof medium, gave rise to the formation of 
the " Bank of Western Australia,'' comprising 
seventy-six proprietors, including a large majority 
of the most wealthy and influential individuals in 
the settlement, which was opened, as a bank of 
issue and deposit, on the 1st of June, 1837, the 
eighth anniversary of the foundation of the colony, 
with a nominal capital of <£ 10,000. 

The affairs of this bank are conducted by a 
board of seven directors, and a managing cashier, 
under their orders ; and it is so constituted as to 



264 



AUSTRALASIA. 



be capable of extension, according to the wants of 
the community, by increasing the number of shares 
from time to time. Its discounts are limited to 
bills not having more than three months to run, 
for which a charge is made at the rate of 124 per 
cent, per annum ; but this rate may probably be 
lowered to 10 per cent, ere long, with mutual 
advantage to the public and the proprietors, from 
the increase of business it might be expected to 
give rise to. As an encouragement to the labour- 
ing classes, small deposits are received, on the 
principles of Savings'-bauks, on which an interest 
of 5 per cent, is allowed. Staten)ents are pub- 
lished quarterly of the assets and liabilities of the 
bank. 

The deposits have been so considerable, that it 
has not been found necessary to call for more than 
the first instalment, amounting to 25 per cent.; 
and from the ample security this bank afibrds, and 
the cautious manner in which its business has been 
hitherto transacted, it appears to possess the entire 
confidence of the public. 

The advantages resulting from this establishment 
became immediately apparent ; the vexatious sys- 
tem of barter, which had proved an intolerable 
evil, ceased in a short period, and a large amount 
of dormant capital was brought into activity ; 
wages generally commenced to he paid in cash ; 
the farmer disposed of his produce, without diffi- 
culty, at remunerating prices; mercantile operations 
were facilitated ; and a degree of regularity in 
payments was introduced, much to the public 
advantage. 

The result of the operations of the first year 
were very satisfiictory, and indicated the increasing 
prosperity of the colony. At former periods, when 
foreign mails were despatched, and remittances 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA, 



265 



inade for necessary importations, the specie in cir- 
culation was completely drained, and had bank- 
notes been in circulation at the tiuie, they must 
necessarily have been presented for payment. But 
at present, no such effects are produced. The 
progress of grazing and tillage, witli an increasing 
port, have caused an entire change in the commer- 
cial position of the colony. Experience has shown, 
that when considerable mercantile remittances have 
been made, no diminution in the circulation of 
notes have taken place, and the amoimt of deposits 
at the bank has been but slightly alFected. 

There is specie in the colony amounting to up- 
wards of £25,000, principally the property of 
individuals who are waiting for opportunities to 
invest their capital in live stock, or in commercial 
speculations as cargoes may arrive. The coin in 
circulation is principally British gold and silver, 
with a portion of Spanish dollars and rupees ; the 
former at 4s. 4d., and the latter at Is. 8d. each. 

As a matter of private speculation, the money 
invested in the bank is likely to yield a good 
return to the proprietors. The profits of the first 
half-year were absorbed by the necessary outfit ; 
but the second half-year left a clear profit over 
the expenditure of. 144 per cent., which after 
setting aside one-fifth as an accumulating fund, 
according to rule, enabled the directors to declare 
a dividend of llj per cent, on the paid up capital. 
This favourable state of things has continued 
ever since ; a sure indication of the prosperity of 
the colony. 

The bills of thaComraissariat upon the Treasury, 
have been hitherto negotiated at the rate of 14 per 
cent, premium, but the demand for tliem is gradu- 
ally decreasing, and will cease entirely when tl'.e 
value of exports is equal to the value of goods 
ss 



266 



AUSTRALASIA. 



imported, unless an increase of population {mm 
without extends the demand for imported commo- 
dities. Plicate bills on Mu^iand are usnaDj snb- 
jeded to a discount of five per cent., and this 
appears to be a reasonable charge, when tbere are 
BO ccmsiderable remittances to be effected . 

The a^regate value of property belonging to 
the colonist^ in land granted at Is. per acre, and 
in roial improTements, bnildings, implements, 
clothe and fimntore, Talne of crop and Hto stock, 
and in boats, vessels, and fishing gear, may be 
estimated, in the gross, at £350,000«j producing, 
with the labour of the community, afiter deducting 
its subsistence, a clear annual accnmnlation ^ 
capital amoonting to nearly XlOO^OOO. 

A statement of the condition of the colonists, 
drawn np by 8ir James Stirling, goiremor of tbe 
colony, shows that each colonist, on an aTcrage, 
possesses a considerable amount of property in 
land, buildings, and cultivation, that be realises 
in grain and the products of live stock, in return 
for his labours ; that afiter providing for bis owe 
subsistence, he exports, in wool and oil, to the 
amount of £8. 19s. 2id., and coutributes to the 
local revenue the sum of £6. 2s, Sd. per annum : 
that tbe comparative mortality is very small, while 
the births and marriages are unusually numerous. 
In recapitulating these facts, it is not out €i place 
to advert to certain rumours whicb have rfn 
assiduously propagated as to the feilure of tbe 
attempt at colonisation in this quarter. So far is 
this from the truth, says Sir James, that it may be 
fairly asked, in what other colony are the colonists, 
on an average, in a moro prosperous condition t 
in this ? or in possession of larger means for future 
wel&re ? 

After these remarks^ it is unne:r«^.'!'y t: '.^i-o 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



267 



a detailed account of the condition of the settlers at 
large, as to food, clothing, and general comfort. 
Even those who have the smallest share in the 
aggregate wealth, or indeed no share at all, may- 
attain to comparative affluence by their own labour, 
at the present rate of wages ; and it is undoubtedly 
in the power of the poorest individual, who is free 
from bodily infirmity, and from vicious propensities, 
to procure for himself in this country, by industry, 
hot only the necessaries of life, but future inde- 
pendence of labour. 

That the climate is congenial to health as well 
as to enjoyment, there is as yet no reason to doubt. 
What its effect may be on the constitution and 
form of the European, there has scarcely been 
sufficient time to ascertain. The children born in 
the colony appear to be of very rapid growth, and 
are exempt from many of those diseases which 
afflict and destroy, in childhood, so many persons 
in more rigorous climates. 

There are no churches in W estern Australia, 
but Divine Service is performed, every Sunday, in 
the Court-house at Perth, by the colonial chaplain, 
who has a salary of .£250. per annum, and an 
allowance of £50. per annum, in lieu of a parson- 
age house ; of dissenting places there are two — one 
at Perth, belonging to the Wesleyans ; and one at 
Guildford, under the patronage of the Western 
Australian Missionary Society. This society was 
formed in London, in 1835, for the purpose of 
promoting religion according to the rites of the 
Church of England. Their first minister, on his 
arrival, erected a chapel and school-house at Guild-- 
ford, and commenced the formation of a farm, oti 
the Swan River, w4iere it is understood the society 
intend to collect natives with a view to their 
instruction and civilization. 



268 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The education of youth has not as yet been 
brought under any system of arrangeuient. There 
are two public schools, however, one at Perth, and 
one at Freemantle, the masters of which receive 
£50. per annum each from government; besides 
these there are several private schools throughout 
the settlement; one of which is kept by the colo- 
nial chaplain in Perth, for young gentlemen, the 
course of instruction in which comprises the entire 
range of classical education which is usually given 
in England. In connection with this school, and 
subject also to the superintendence of the colonial 
chaplain, a school is opened for instruction in the 
various branches of elementary education. There 
is a school for young ladies, and also a girls' school, 
at Perth. 

The state of morality, with the exception of a 
tendency to the excessive use of spirituous liquors 
amongst certain individuals, is highly satisftictory. 
Civil actions have greatly decreased in number, 
notwithstanding the redress of injuries has been 
rendered much less expensive, in minor cases, by 
the reduction of fees. 

The Agricultural Society had its beginning in 
the first year of the settlement. It comprises 
almost all the owners of land. Its members vv^ere 
admitted by ballot. The regular meetings take 
place on a fixed day in each quarter of the year, and 
are usually well attended. The society has pro- 
moted good conduct among farm servants, by 
giving distinctions and prizes to the best conducted 
and most efficient labourers, and in other respects 
it has tended, in a very considerable degree, to 
promote the customary objects of such institutions. 

There are four fishing associations, for prose- 
cuting the whale fishery on the coasts ; the first at 
Freemantle, consisting of thirty members, sub- 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



26.9 



scribing £50. each ; the second, called the " Perth 
Fishing Company," is divided into sixty shares, at 
£15, each. The fishing ground of these two com- 
panies is near the entrance of the Swan River. 
Tbe two other establishments occupy stations io 
Doubtful Island Bay, on the south coast. It is 
expected that the aggregate produce of tliese 
fisheries, in oil, whalebone, and seal skins, win 
annually increase. 

There are published in the uolony two weekly 
newspapers, independent of the Government 
Gazette.'' The oldest of these has existed, under 
the name of the Perth Gazette^ about twenty years. 
The other, under the title of the Swan River 
Guardian, commenced its publication about four- 
teen years ago, as the friend of the people and the 
corrector of abuses. 

The local administration is provided for by the 
Royal Commission and instructions, and by the 
Act of Parliament, and an Order in Council, of 
the 1st. of November, 1830. 

The legislative power conferred on the governor 
and the members of the legislative council has 
hitherto been exercised only in the adoption of 
certain Acts of Parliament of a general tendency, 
and in the passing of a few ordinances connected 
with matters of local interest. •> The state of the 
law in this colony is, therefore, as yet, in strict 
accordance with the hitter and spirit of the law of 
England, as far as it is applicable to the circum- 
stances of this country. In the absence of every 
institution foreign to the practice of the motlier 
country, as well as the non existence of foreign 
customs, language, and blood, in the settlement, 
it possesses an attraction for emigrants in a great 
degrt^e peculiar to itself. 

The annual cost of the civil, ecclesiastical, and 



270 



AUSTRALASIA. 



military departments in Western Australia amounts 
to about £23,000 ; the funds for paying which are 
drawn from the Commissariat chest, the Colonial 
chest, and parliamentary grants. 

With regard to the public establishments of this 
colony, it is necessary to observe that the popula- 
tion is scattered over a wide extent of country. 
The causes of this dispersion were, in the first 
place, the annexation of the settlement of King 
George's Sound; and^ in the second place, the 
mode in which lands were granted to the colonists. 
Having power to select large grants in districts 
suitable to their views, the settlers naturally availed 
themselves of their freedom of choice, and lands 
being subject to forfeiture if not improved within 
a certain number of years, they have been impelled 
by the fear of losing them, to locate themselves 
upon their grants, however remote their position. 
This dispersion has been further increased by the 
nature of the country, in respect of its general in- 
feriority of soil, or absence of water, in certain 
localities. 

As all had equal reason to expect the protection 
and assistance of the government, it became neces- 
sary to form stations at many different points, hy 
which the expenditure has been much increased ; 
and establishments which would have been suffi- 
cient for the wants of a much larger population, if 
confined within reasonable limits, have not sufficed 
for the wants of this colony, embracing, as it does, 
so many separate and distinct stations . 

In the military department, a great increase of 
force is requisite for the protection of the colonists. 
Whatever may have been the views of the govern- 
ment, on the earlier formation of this settlement, 
the settlers consider themselves, by its declarations, 
entitled to be protected and secured in the quiet 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



271 



eDjoyment of the lands assigned to them, or bought 
by their outlay. Without this, they cannot fulfil 
the location duties, nor can they make any pro- 
gress in the extension of the settlement. This 
protection of the white population is, moreover, 
necessary to the security of the aboriginal race. 
If not given, a constant state of warfare and vio- 
lence, between the two races, must follow ; and 
while the former is hindered in his progress to- 
wards the establishment of the country, the latter 
will be rendered vindictive and cruel in proportion 
to the injury which he receives from, and inflicts 
upon, the settler. To correct or prevent these 
evils, the only course which seems advisable is, to 
declare the present limitation of the settlement to 
be that territory which is included between the 
31st degree of latitude and the south coast; and 
from the west coast to the meridian of Doubtful 
Island Bay. Within that district military stations 
should be formed at the following points : — 

Head-quarters, Perth, commandant, 1 captain, 
2 subalterns, and 30 non-commissioned officers and 
privates ; the subaltern stations at the head of boat 
navigation on the Swan and Canning Rivers, 10 
non-commissioned officers and privates at each 
station : at Pinjarra, the head of the navigation of 
the Murray, and at Peel's Inlet, 10 men each ; 
head of navigation on the Collie, 1 captain, 20 
men ; Wellington or Leschenault, Wonnerup, and 
the Yasse, 80 men ; Albany, and the subordinate 
stations. Kalgan, Nornalup Inlet, and Doubtful 
Island Bay, 1 captain, 4 subalterns, and 50 non- 
commissioned officers and privates ; Williamsburgh, 
Kojenup, and Hotham, 40 men ; Beverley, I sub- 
altern, 10 men ; York, 1 captain, 1 subaltern, 20 
men ; Toodgay, 1 subaltern,^ 10 men* Total, 1 



272 



AUSTRALASIA. 



major, 4 captains, 8 subalterns, and 260 rank and 
file. 

The above-mentioned military stations were 
proposed by the governor with reference to the 
best lines of intercommunication for mutual sup- 
port, aud also with reference to the several dis- 
tricts in which lands have been given, and loca- 
tions begun. 

At each of the principal stations indicated, a 
government resident, or inspector of natives, would 
be required, having under him a small party of 
mounted constabulary, not exceeding four men. 
Around these posts settlers would congregate and 
form towns and villages, and would thereby tend 
to the cultivation and improvement of the sur- 
rounding country. By proper escorts, communi- 
cation might be kept up, surveys might be ex- 
tended, the mails transmitted, and the peace of the 
country be preserved. 

The natives, instead of being aggressors on the 
lives and property of the colonists, would see the 
danger and impracticability of outrage, and learn 
to accommodate themselves to the instructiou of 
the proper authorities in their advancement to- 
wards civilization, and the w^hole colony would be 
bound together in a chain of mutual support and 
combined effort. Having established these, no 
new posts, nor sub-detachments should be formed ; 
nor would the administration of civil affairs, for 
some years, require a further extension. All per- 
sons residing at a distance from these stations 
would do so at their own risk, and would make 
their arrangements accordingly. 

The building in Perth, for the accommodation 
of tlie public offices, is one of great value to the 
public service, combining under one roof all the 
different departments, inducing thereby regularity 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



270 



in the despatch of business. Previous to the erec- 
tion of this building, it was almost impossible to 
arrive at a systematic arrangement of papers, or to 
secure them effectually from loss or accident ; the 
case is now different. 

The principal prison of the colony is situated at 
Freemantle ; but it will be necessary, before long, 
to construct a more suitable edifice for that pur- 
pose, at or near the seat of government. From 
the removal of the jail establishment at Perth, a 
considerable saving would accrue in the adminis- 
tration of justice, and the management of the pri- 
soners would also be more immediately under the 
inspection of the higher authorities. 

It can scarcely be said that any roads exist in 
this colony, although certain lines of communica- 
tion have been improved, by clearing them of tim- 
ber, by bridging the streams, and by establishing 
ferries in two places, on the broader parts of the 
Swan River. The management of roads is under 
the direction of two commissioners, viz., the sur- 
veyor-general and the advocate-general; and the 
funds available for this purpose are appropriated 
to the removal of those inconveniences which press 
most heavily upon the settlers ; but neither the 
amount of these funds, nor the circumstances of 
the settlers, admit of the reduction of this branch 
of the service to a more systematic arrangement. 

In 1832 the mode of disposing of crown lands 
by sale came into operation, and in 1834 the prin- 
ciple of sale was made applicable to town allot- 
ments. Since those periods the new system has 
been strictly adhered t<», except in the settletnent 
of claims which arose out of the forn>er system of 
granting land. The actual value of unimproved 
lands disposable by private bargain, is from one 
shilling to two shillings and sixpence per acre. 
N 2 



274 



AUSTRALASIA. 



A few sales have been made nevertheless, of crown 
land, at or above the established minimum price, 
five shillings per acre, hut the price in these cases 
has been raised by some peculiarity in position, or 
by competition. There is little reason to hope 
that there will be any considerable sales of crown 
land effected, at the regulated price, for some 
years, but it has sustained a gradual increase in 
value up to the present time, and several grants 
have lately chariged hands at rates of purchase 
that betoken an inxjreasing desire to invest money 
in that species of property. 

The principle of sa^le as laid down in the royal 
instructions appears to be beneficial, with the fol- 
lowing exceptions : — 

1st. The price^stablished in this colony being 
the same as in New South Wales and Yan Die- 
man's Land where land has acquired, by time and 
outlay, a much higher value, is, comparatively 
speaking, too high here. 

2nd. The practice of bringing all lands to public 
auction occasionally imposes hardship and disap- 
pointment on those applicants who have incurred, 
previous to the time of sale, the expense and 
trouble of searching for locations, which are some- 
times bought by others, to the great loss of the 
original applicant. This evil may be remedied, 
no doubt, by adhering strictly to the practice of 
refusing all applications for land not previously 
surveyed, mapped, and offered for sale on the 
motion of the government ; but this rule would 
occasion greater hardship than that complained of, 
unless an extension of surveying operations take 
place sufficient to meet any reasonable demand. 

The third inconvenience arising out of the pre- 
sent land system gives rise to a greater complaint 
than the evil itself would seem to justify. It pro- 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



275 



ceeds from the privilege conferred on officers to 
purchase land at public sales on account of certain 
sums remitted to them, in proportion to their rank 
and service. Sales of this description do not yield 
any local revenue, and yet they occasion local ex- 
penditure in surveys, &c. The officer can afford to 
bid higher prices than an individual who has to 
pay ready money, and persons of the latter class 
complain, in consequence, that this indulgence to 
naval and military officers is conferred at the ex- 
pense cf the colonists, and to their detriment, by 
bringing into the market competitors who can 
easily outbid them, and deprive them of all the 
most favourable purchases. 

In the course of the year 1837, three additional 
sources of revenue were created, viz., postage of 
letters, fees leviable in the civil court, and freight 
for goods and passengers conveyed to and from 
the outports. The proceeds of these branches of 
income cannot be looked to as likely to yield any 
great return for some years yet to come ; but in 
the gradual improvement of the fiscal institutions 
of the country, it had become necessary to discon- 
tinue the previous practice of appropriating as pri- 
vate emoluments the sums received for postage, 
and for fees in civil actions ; and with reference to 
the accommodation granted to individuals in the 
absence of coasting vessels to convey themselves 
and their effiicts to and from the out stations, the 
local government found it necessary to burden this 
indulgence with some charge, both as an act of 
justice to the public, as well as of protection to an 
incipient coasting trade. The income derived from 
the last named source is of course only casual land 
temporary. The prospects of the colony in regard 
to future revenue are decidedly improving. 

We have obtained a great part of the foregoing 



2T6 



AUSTRALASIA. 



accoant of Western Australia from the Statistical 
Report of Sir James Stirling, the governor of that 
colony. He concludes his Report with the follow- 
ing observations : — 

" At the outset of the colooy, various circum- 
stances concurred to create an interest in the un- 
dertaking, and to cause a considerable influx of 
people ; but the actual progress made in its forma- 
tion for the first tliree or four years was by no 
means equal to its apparent growth and the in- 
crease in numbers. . The face of the country near 
the sea was uninviting ; the losses consequent upon 
exposure to the weather, the want of experience in 
such adventures, and in many cases the want of 
means, gave rise in their several ways, to doubt 
and despondency. Very few engaged with spirit 
in their proper avocatior=s, and many left, or talked 
of leaving, a place in wliich there was evidently 
much to be done and borne before success could 
be attained. In the meanwhile there was no re- 
turns coming in from tlie land, nor money to pay 
for imported articles The necessaries of life were 
at enormous prices, and the funds of settlers were 
generally exhausted in tlieir own support, instead 
of being applied to the advancement of their farms 
and business. The disappointments experienced 
within the colony affected its reputation in other 
places, and a stop was put for a time to further 
emigration. To complete the catalogue of diffi- 
culties, conflicts with the natives were continually 
occurring, and too often ended in the loss of pro- 
perty and life. 

" But distressing as these evils were, they pre- 
pared and strengthened the colonists for those exer 
tions which necessity imposed upon them. A 
steadier view was taken of the objects to be gained, 
want produced frugality and labour; the resources 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



277 



of the colony were tried, and in time the subsis- 
tence of the settlers was raised within the settle- 
ment. Increasing means gave rise to confidence 
and to renewed exertion. 

" The returns for the last two or three yea^s 
afford satisfactory proofs of the steady advance- 
ment of the colony, although the scale on which 
colonisation has been attempted here is limited to 
very narrow bounds, and the whole affair is unim- 
portant in number and in means. Its progress 
hereafter, at some rate or other, is an event which 
may be inferred from the success of the experiment 
up to the present time. I will not undertake to 
say that it will prosper and become important, but 
it is at the same time not unreasonable nor useless, 
with cautious adher€nce to experience of the past, 
to consider beforehand the probable state of things 
in the settlement a few years hence. 

The production of supplies for internal con- 
sumption, the growth of wool, the prosecution of 
fisheries, and the growth of cotton and sugar, are 
the leading objects to which attention will be given. 

" Prospects of the Settlement as to the Supply of 
Food. — -With the exception of tea, sugar, soap and 
candles, glass and earthernware, tools and imple- 
ments, clothing and furniture, there are no im- 
portant articles of consumption necessary to the 
settler which may not be raised here. It is even 
probable that flour and meat, butter, cheese, colonial 
beer and spirits, wine, dried and green fruits, and 
a variety of excellent vegetables will soon be brought 
to market at low prices, and in such abundance as 
to accomplish all that is desirable, with reference 
to providing for the present or the future popu- 
lation. 

" The accomplishment of this point is the first 
and most important step in all new countries, for 



278 



AUSTRALASIA. 



when importation of necessaries is stopped, an ac- 
cumulation of means within the settlement begins ; 
the people, well fed and contented, invite their 
friends to join them, or fresh labourers are sent for, 
i^nd animation is given to enterprise in other 
branches of industry. At the present moment, this 
point has been attained by the settlers in general, 
and it is not too much to expect that henceforward 
the subsistence of an increasing and widely ex- 
tended population will be easily procurable from 
internal resources. . 

Prospects of the Colony m regard to tJie grvwfh 
of Wool. — The number of sheep in the colony at 
the present time is 12,000. Their rate of increase 
is found to be, exclusive of the wethers and the 
proceeds cA the wool, about 40 per cent, per an- 
num, or they double their numbers in each period 
of two years. No obstacle is found at present to 
the extension of sheep-farming. 

" Prospects of the Settlement as regards Fisheries. 
— ^^I am satisfied that the extension of this pursuit 
will be miost rapid, for if the profitable nature of bay- 
fishing be considered, as well as the saving of ex- 
pense, by employing in the seas adjacent to this 
colony smaller Yessels than those usually fitted out 
from London, together with the advantage arising 
from the constancy of their employment in fishing, 
without the necessity of long voyages to and from 
their whaling ground, it may he estimated that the 
profits on capital so employed here will be one- 
third higher than on vessels sailing out of English 
ports. This advantage is of great importance at 
the present time, when the British whaler, loaded 
with an outfit exceeding by one-third that of the 
American ship, in consequence of taxation within 
the United Kingdom, has no chance of competing 
with foreigners in the markets of the continent or 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



279 



China, and consequently four vessels out of five 
engaged at present in the South Sea Fisheries 
belong to America. The produce of the colonial 
fishing in the present season is expected to attain 
the value of £452'00, in oil, whale-bone and seal- 
skins. 

Prospects of the Settlement in regard to the Pro- 
duction of Cotton and Sugar, — In my dispatch, No. 
144, I had the honour to submit certain proposi- 
tions connected with the growth of cotton and 
sugar in the northern regions of this colony, by 
means of free labour, to be procured from Hindostan, 
or the neighbouring islands in the Malay archipelago. 
It is unnecessary in this report to revert in detail 
to the operations and measures therein referred to, 
but in coosideriug the prospects of the settlement, 
its peculiar adaptation to the future cultivation of 
these articles ou^ht not to be overlooked. 

" Experiments in these branches of industry are, 
however, beyond the means and the numbers of the 
colonists at present ; but I venture to anticipate 
that the estimation of the colony in the eyes of the 
public will be gradually enhanced, the longer this 
peculiarity in its natural qualifications is considered 
and examined. 

Such being the not unreasonable prospects of 
the settlement, it is easy to point out those mea- 
sures which will tend to their realization. 

Of these, the principal will be a gradual influx 
of people to participate in the enterprises to which 
the natural qualifications of the territory are shown 
to be suited. This influx must, however, arise out 
of private adventure, stimulated by success, and 
principally sustained by the profits made on those 
leading pursuits. The government cannot aid 
efl'ectually in hastening the progress of the settle- 
ment in these branches of industry, but it may pro- 



280 



AUSTRALASIA. 



tect the settler from injury, by effective public 
establishments, until the community be rich enough 
to provide for its own protection. This the settle- 
ment may be fairly expected to accomplish in a 
few years, if the aid hitherto given, and still re- 
quired, be not too soon withdrawn." 

There are various opinions, however, regarding 
Western Australia as a field for emigration. Lieu- 
tenant Brereton thus describes the appearance of 
this settlement : — 

'•We arrived at Swan River, and it maybe 
imagined how much our curiosity was excited to 
see, with our own eyes, a spot of which such a 
variety of accounts had been published. 

" This place was known to the French long be- 
fore the English thought of colonising it ; but they 
seem to have entertained no very high opinion of 
its beauties or capabilities. The coast, to some 
distance on each side of the entrance to the river, 
has a most wretched appearance, nothing being 
visible save barren rocks or a sandy beach, with a 
dreary-looking country beyond ; in short, a more 
inhospitable spot is rarely to be found ; and a ves- 
sel driven upon the rocks formed an object which 
did not conduce to animate the scene. 

'' Freemantle, at the time of my arrival, was a 
mere encampment, every person being either in a 
tent or temporary hut. Its site is a level spot, 
consisting entirely of sand, and the ' bush,' or 
forest, extends to within a very short distance of 
it. Water was easily procured by digging holes 
a few feet in depth, but it was not particularly 
good, and that w-hich we took on board at our de- 
parture was not drinkable. I understand, how- 
ever, that a plentiful supply has been found since, 
and of a good description. The only spring near 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



281 



the place was about a mile distant, and it fell into 
the river only a few yards from its source. 

" If the site of Freemantle alone be considered, 
a worse spot for a town could hardly have been 
selected. Situated as it is upon a bed of sand, and 
exposed to a glare that is almost insupportable, it 
holds out but little inducement for any person to 
fix his residence there, unless compelled by cir- 
cumstances. 

It was not a little curious to observe the in- 
cipient town during the first few months after its 
commencement. Tents and huts in every variety 
— goods of all descriptions scattered about in dis- 
order — the emigrants employed, some in cookiog 
their provisions, and others in sauntering about, 
or landing their effects — many looking very miser- 
able, and not a few equally happy — difi^erent kinds 
of animals just landed, and showing evidently how 
much they must have sufi^ered doriog so long a 
voyage. Such was the scene I witnessed on land- 
ing at the spot on which the future principal sea- 
port of Western Australia was to stand. 

" At the entrance of the Swan, which is close 
to Freemantle, there is a bar, on which the depth 
of water does not exceed six or seven feet, and 
often, even when the wind is moderate, the pas- 
sage over it is not a little hazardous. From thence 
to Perth the distance is about nine miles ; and the 
navigation is rather impeded by shoals, which in 
some places extend nearly across the river. 

" On approaching the township, one part of the 
river forms a lake several miles in extent, which 
would make a fine harbour, if a canal could be cut 
so as to admit large vessels. Its shores are rocky-, 
and generally useless to the agriculturist. Perth, 
the intended capital, stands on a rising spot, covered^ 
when 1 was there^ with trees, in the midst of whick 



282 



AUSTRALASIA. 



the settlers had pitched their tents, or erected their 
h.uts ; and the situation is not only Vv-ell chosen, 
but affords some highly interesting views. The 
river at this part is about half a mile wide, or rather 
more, but it is so shallow that it may sometimes 
be forded. 

A mile or two above Perth there are several 
islands ; and the river at ll^is spot was so shallow, 
that we were obliged to get out of our boat, and 
drag or lift it thronorh the mud for some distance ; 
after which we found ourselves in deep water, and 
it soon became fresh. 

^' From this part of the river, to a distance, (as 
well as we could judge.) of twenty-five or thirty 
miles above Perth, — that is to say, as far as we 
could proceed in a boat, — the scenery was fre- 
quently of a beautiful description, and the banks 
in many places were composed of a rich alluvial 
soil, covered with excellent grass. Unfortunately 
the good soil was rarely found to extend more than 
half a mile from the river, and often not more than 
fifty or a hundred yards. The land, to a greater 
<h*stance, may be capable of cultivation ; but we 
lost sight of the black mould, and observed beyond 
it, sand and ironstone. 

In some parts the country was thickly covered 
with forest; but in others it had the appearance of 
a fine park, in which scarcely a tree was to be 
seen that one would think it necessary to destroy. 

"It has been confidently asserted that the land is 
generally so scantily wooded that there are not 
more than two trees to the acre ! Xothing can be 
more absurd : for it is only here and there that 
such is the ease, the country being more commonly 
what is denominated ' open forest/ with spots 
where the trees are verv close together. 

We made a point of landing wherever we per- 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



2S3 



ceived an indication of good land, and frequently 
discovered the holes which had been dug by those 
who had preceded us, in order to ascertain the 
nature of the soil, and saw at once the cause why 
some persons had been so grossly deceived. In- 
stead of proceeding in a direct line from the river, 
they had, in consequence of their ignorance of its 
course, passed partly across an elbow, or bend, 
formed by it, without being aware that they were 
all the time not far from its banks ; so that they 
were led to believe the black mould extended 
several miles from^ instead of cdong it. 

The Canning falls into the Swan a little below 
Perth, on the opposite side ; and in most of its 
features resembles that river, but it is smaller. 

" One party ascended the stream as far as the 
fallen trees permitted, which was not more, I 
think, than fifteen or sixteen miles from its con- 
fluence with the Swan. Its banks are highly 
picturesque — often romantic ; and it struck me 
that there was rather a larger proportion of good 
soil than on the last named river ; but even on the 
Canning, it extends not farther than from half to 
three quarters of a mile, and very seldom so far. 

"Between Perth and Freemantle, the land, in an 
agricultural point of view, is almost worthless, if 
we except a few small spots ; the greater portion 
of it consisting of sand, or sandstone, covered with 
trees and underwood. 

" The base of the Darling range approaches to 
within a few miles of Perth ; but the declivities of 
these hills had not the appearance of being parti- 
cularly abrupt ; and their elevation is considered to 
be only about 1,200 feet, which I am inclined to 
believe is somewhat underrated. Their aspect is 
triste and displeasing. How far inland the range 
extends is not known ; but some officers had gone 



284 



AUSTRALASIA. 



up the Canning as far as tlie}^ could in a boat, and 
then walked, according to their statement, up- 
wards of forty miles, when, seeing no apparent 
termination to the range, and their provisions being 
well nigh exhausted, they were obliged to retrace 
their steps. 

" They said (and there is every reason for believ- 
ing their inforniation to be correct) that the soil 
was bad or indifferent, excepting sometimes at the 
bottom of a valley or ravine ; nor did they see 
much land adapted even for the purposes of 
grazing : indeed, their account of the interior was 
far from cheerino^. 

"On the Canning we fell in with twenty-one of 
the aborigines — a greater number than had been 
previously seen in a body. They were of good 
height, straight limbed, very slightly made, and 
appeared to be extremely active. As though they 
were not naturally sufficiently ugly, many of them 
had thrust a feather, a bone, or a piece of wood 
through the septum of the nose ; and the same 
practice was ob!?erved on various parts of the east 
coast, by Cook's people, who gave the ornament 
the appellation ' spritsail-yard.' " 

Otlier writers again assert that good land is 
plentiful in Western Australia, and that the only 
serious evil which exists is the want of steady 
labourers and artizans. One author has the fol- 
lowing observations on this subject : — 

" This colony may prosper in the course of 
years, but for the present it must be considered, 
when compared with the expectations of those who 
founded it, a decided failure. Why this failure, 
with all the elements of success, a fine climate, 
plenty of good land (in proportion, perhaps, to the 
population), plenty of capital, and enough of 
labourers ? The explanation is easy ; in this colony 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA.. 



285 



there never has been a class of labourers. Those 
who went out as labourers, no sooner reached the 
colony, than they were tempted by the super- 
abundance of good land, to become landowners. 
One of the founders of the colony, Mr. Peel, (who, 
it is said, took out a capital of £.00,000., and 300 
persons of the labouring class, men, women, and 
children,) has been represented as left without a 
servant to make his bed, or fetch him water from 
the river. The writer of the first book concerning 
this colony, states, that landing in Cockburn's 
Sound, with goods taken from England, he did 
with some difficulty procure workmen to place his 
goods under a tent ; but tliat there, for want of 
workmen to remove them, they remained till they 
were spoiled, as the tent became rotten, in such 
a state of things it was impossible to preserve 
capital. While Mr. Peel v^as without servants, 
his capital perished ; but as soon as his capital had 
perished for want of servants, those who had been 
bis servants insisted on his giving them employ- 
ment. Having tried a life of complete indepen- 
dence, and felt the pains of hunger, they now 
wanted to become labourers again. At one time 
Mr. Peel was to be seen imploring his servants to 
remain with him ; at another, escaping from their 
fury, because he could not give them work. The 
same thing happened in many cases. In each 
case it was owing to the facility with which people 
— labourers, when they reached the colony — be- 
came independent landowners. Some of these in- 
dependent landowners died of hunger ; and at a 
time, too, when, as it happened, a large supply of 
food had reached the colony from Yan Dieman's 
Land. Many of them, both capitalists and la- 
bourers — capitalists with capital, and labourers 
without work, — have removed to Yan Dieman's 



286 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Land ; the cost of passcage (for the latter) being 
defrayed by settlers in that prosperous colony." 

Dr. Lang, also, who has made himself so well 
acquainted with the different divisions of Austra- 
lia, has formed an unfavourable opinion of the set- 
tlement. He says : — 

"The western coasts of all the large divisions of 
land, in the southern hemisphere, are remarkably 
barren, with the exception perhaps of the inime- 
diate vicinity of Swan River ; nothing is visible 
along the coast but an interminable range of low 
sand hills and calcareous rocks : there are no 
mountains to relieve the eye, and to afford, by the 
decomposition of their luxuriant vegetation, a rich 
soil for the valleys ; there are no rivers to conduct 
to the interior ; and scarcely even a spring of fresh 
water can be found. The w^est coast of Southern 
Africa, the west coast of South America, and the 
west coast of New Zealand, are, with few excep- 
tions, equally barren. 

Supposing both the climate and the soil at 
Swan River to be equal to those of New South 
Wales, there are no roads in Western Australia ; 
labour is not to be procured but at an exorbitant 
price ; and wool, the chief produce of the soil, 
w^hich is raised under all these disadvantages, is 
8old at the very same price in England as the pro- 
duce of the eastern colony." 

Notwithstanding these various statements, this 
colony appears to be increasing in prosperity, 
having more than doubled its population during 
the last ten years ; consequently its trade and 
commerce must likewise be extending •• and we 
have little doubt that, although not possessing 
the numerous advantages of the eastern colony, 
in a few years it will become a place of great 
importance. 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA 



Is situated, in a south-eastern direction, along tiie 
southern shore of Australia, comprehending the 
space between 132 degrees and 141 degrees of east 
longitude. It lies between the Swan River and 
New South Wales. This colony has been imper- 
fectly explored, and it is still but comparatively 
little known, although each successive day is 
throwing more light upon the subject. But from 
the numerous conflicting statements made by the 
South Australian Company and recent travellers, it 
is impossible for any person not on the spot to re- 
concile these contradictions ; we must, therefore, 
leave the reader to form his own judgment upon 
the following account, which is compiled from 
various sources. 

The conditions under which this colony was 
established, will be best seen by the following 
abridgement of the Act of Parliament framed and 
passed for the formation of the new settlement : — 

*' The colony to be erected into a province, under 
the name of South Australia ; extending from the 
1 32nd to 141st degree of east longitude, and from 
the south coast, including the adjacent islands, 
.northwards to the tropic of Capricorn. 

" The whole of this territory, within the above 
limits, to be open to settlement by British subjects. 



288 



AUSTRALASIA. 



" Not to be governed by laws applying to other 
parts of Australia, but by those only expressly 
enacted for this colony. 

" The colony in no case to be employed as the 
place of confinement of transported ct)nvicts. 

" No waste or public lands to become private 
property, save by one means only, namely, by 
purchase at a fixed minimum price, or as much 
above that price as the competition of public auc- 
tion may determine. 

" Subject to the above restriction, and to the 
necessity of previous surveys, all persons, whether 
residing in the colony or Great Britain, to be 
free to acquire property in waste or public land 
in fee, and without limit, either as to quantity or 
situation. 

" The whole of the purchase money of such 
waste or public land to be employed in conveying 
labourers, natives of the British Isles, to the 
colony. 

" The emigrants conveyed to the colony with 
the purchase-money of waste land, to be of the 
two sexes, in equal numbers; a preference amongst 
the applicants for a passage cost free will be given 
to young married persons, without children ; so 
that for any given outlay of their money, the pur- 
chasers of land may obtain the greatest amount of 
labour wherewith to cultivate the land, and of 
population to increase its value. 

" Commissioners to be appointed by government 
to manage the disposal of waste or public lands, 
the expenditure of the purchase-money thereof as 
an emigration fund, and to discharge other duties 
relative to the colony. 

• " Until the colony be settled, and the sales of 
public lands shall have produced a fund adequate 
to the want of labour in the colony, the commis- 



SOUTH AXIS FK' A LI A. 



289 



sioners to have ailtborky to raise fnoney on loan, 
by the issue of bonds or otherwise, bearing coloisial 
interest, for the purpose of conveying selected 
labourers to the colony; so that the first body of 
emigrating capitalists going out to buy land, may 
from the first be supplied with labour. The com- 
raissioners being empowered, until such loan or 
loans be repaid, with interest, to apply all proceeds 
of the sales of lands in repayment of such loans. 

" For defraying (provisionally) the necessary 
expenses of the commission and of the colonial 
government, the commissioners to have authority 
to raise money on loan, by the issue of bonds, or 
otherwise, and provided such expenditure do not 
exceed two hundred thousand pounds in the whole, 
the amount thereof to be deemed a colonial debt, 
and secured upon the revenue of the colony. 

The authority of the commissioners to continue 
until the colony, having attained a certain popula- 
tion, shall, through the means of a representative 
assembly, to be called by his Majesty, undertake 
to discharge the colonial debt, and to defray the 
cost of future government ; when the colony is to 
receive such a constitution of local government, as 
his Majesty, with the advice of his privy council, 
and with the authority of parliament, may deem 
most desirable. The population of the province 
must amount to at least fifty thousand before it [)e 
lawful for the crown to frame a constitution for the 
colony.'* 

The colony of South Australia is self-supporting. 
From the reign of Queen Elizabeth down to the 
year 1831, it appears to liave been the practice of 
all governments to make large grants of colonial 
land to individuals, who were at all times found 
ready to receive such grants, unconditioiially, to 
o 



2D0 



AUSTRAL A. 



any extent ; the consequences •of such a measure 
have uniformly been a scarcity of labour. 

In 1831, a number of influential gentlemen 
formed themselves into a committee, for the pur- 
pose of establishing a chartered company, to carry 
into effect this nev«r principle. This committee, in 
their ' resources for correct information, as to the 
general character of the country, in which it was 
intended to introduce this novel mode of coloniza- 
tion, spared no pains, having examined every 
publication relating to the subject, and every 
individual, within their reach, who had personally 
visited its coasts. The evidence resulting from 
these researches having been published, a number 
of persons intending to settle in the proposed new 
colony were collected, but after a long and unsuc- 
cessful negociation with the government to obtain 
the desired charter, these intending emigrants were 
dispersed, and the project at that time abandoned. 

About the beginning of 1834, another com- 
mittee was formed, with the same objects, under 
the name of the South Australian Association. 
By great exertions they succeeded in obtaining 
a bill for the colonization of South Australia upon 
these principles, which received the royal assent 
on the last day of the session of 1834. 

This bill empowers the commissioners, appointed 
by the crown, to declare all the lands of the colony 
(excepting only portions which may be required 
for roads and footpaths,) to be open to purchase by 
British subjects, and to make regulations for the 
surveying and sale of such lands, and for the 
letting of unsold portions for any period not exceed- 
ing three years. The commissioners may sell the 
land, either by auction or otherwise, but it is ren- 
dered imperative that they sell in public, for ready 
money, and in no case for a lower price than 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 291 

twelve shillings sterling per acre ; but the upset 
])nce to be uniform, whatever the quantity or 
situation of the land put up for sale. 

The following official account of the plan of 
colonization, published by the commissioners, will 
best illustrate the subject : — 

1. The characteristic feature of the plan of colo- 
nization, laid down by the act of parliament, is a 
certain means for securing a sufficient supply of 
free labour. 

2. This is accomplished by requiring every 
applicant for colonial land, in order to entitle 
iiiinself to a grant, to pay a certain sum per acre 
to a general fund to be employed in carrying out 
labourers. 

3. The emigration fund, thus raised, is placed 
under the management of the commissioners, whose 
duty it is to regulate the rate of payment, so as to 
obtain neither too large nor too small a number of 
labourers ; and by the selection of young healthy 
persons of good character, and both sexes in equal 
numbers, to render the fund as efficient for the 
purposes of the colony as possible. 

4. This arrangement secures many very im- 
portant advantages. First, haying provided a 
sufficient supply of free labour, the act of parlia- 
ment declares that no convicts shall be sent to the 
settlement ; and thus the colonists are protected 
from the enormous evils which result from the 
immorality and profligacy unavoidable in a penal 
settlement. Secondly, as the labourers will be 
carried out at the common cost of the landowners, 
by means of the emigration fund, and as they will 
be sufficiently numerous, it is not necessary that 
they should be indentured to any one. Both 
employers and labourers will be perfectly free to 



292 



AUSTRALASIA. 



enter into any arrangement which may be mutu- 
ally agreed upon ; a state of things which expe- 
rience has shown to be much more conducive 
to contentment and prosperity than any other. 
Thirdly, the contribution to the emigrant fund 
being a necessary preliminary to the acquisition of 
land, labourers taken out cost- free, before becoming 
landowners, and thus ceasing to work for others, 
will furnish the means of carrying out other 
labourers to supply their places. This arrange- 
ment, the fairness of which must be obvious to 
every one, is really beneficial, not only to those 
who are landowners in the first instance, but to 
those also who may become such by course of 
industry and frugality ; for while it diminishes 
the injurious facility with which, in most colonies, 
a person with scarcely any capital can become a 
petty landowner or cottier^ a temptation which few 
have sufficient strength of mind to resist, notwith- 
standing the state is one of incessant care and toil, 
it holds out a prospect .of real independence and 
comfort to those who will patiently wait the very 
few years which are necessary to enable any one, 
with colonial wages, to acquire sufficient capital to 
purchase land and become a master. Fourthly, as 
those who will cultivate their land, and thus re- 
quire many labourers, will contribute no more to 
the emigration fund than those who leave it waste, 
the non-cultivation of extensive appropriated dis- 
tricts — one of the chief obstacles to the progress of 
every colony hitherto established — will be greatly 
discouraged, if not altogether prevented. 

6. In determining the amount of contribution to 
the emigrant fund, the commissioners are required, 
at any given time, to make a uniform charge per 
acre, whatever may be the situation or quality of 
the land granted, and in no case to fix the charge 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



293 



at less than twelvft shillings per acre. The pay- 
ment is made once only — namely, when the party 
receives a grant of the land ; which grant gives 
him an absolute and unconditional tide to the 
estate ; the crown making no reservation what- 
ever. 

6. As tlie contribution to the emiofrant fund is 
the sole condition of obtaining land, the amount of 
contribution is described in the act of parliament 
and in the regulations as to its price, it is worthy 
of remark, however, that as the commissioners 
are required to expend the emigration fund, with- 
out any deduction whatever, in carrying out the 
labourers, the whole contribution is returned to 
those who make it, in the form of passage- money 
for their labourers ; and therefore, strictly speaking, 
it is not land, but the facility of obtaining labour 
which is bought. It is important that this prin- 
ciple should be steadily kept in view by those who 
may desire to understand the plan on which the 
colony is formed. 

The following are the RsgulafAons of the Com- 
missioners for the Sale of Land in the colony: — 

1. The survey of the public land shall, as far 
as possible, be carried so much in advance of 
settled districts, that there shall be at all times an 
extent of land surveyed and open to purchase, 
exceeding the wants of the colonists. 

* The tenure by which land is held in South Australia 
is greatly superior to that by which laud is held in the 
other Australian colonies, where the crown reserves to 
itself the right of mining, cutting timber or stone for 
public works, and of making roads across any estate it 
chooses ; while in South Australia no reserve whatever is 
made by the crown. This is the more important to the 
fortunate proprietors of those lauds where valuable mine.i 
are worked. 



294 



AU8TBALASIA. 



[^This regulation secures to in^nding purchasers, 
at all times, the most complete liberty of appro- 
priation, with respect both to the quantity and 
situation of the land which they may desire to 
obtain.] 

2. Surveyed lands shall be divided, as nearly as 
may be, into sections of eighty acres each, with 
the exception of the site of the first town, which 
was divided into acre sections ; and maps of the 
surveyed lands, accompanied by the best practi- 
cable description of them, shall be constantly 
exhibited in the Laiid-office. 

I^By this regulation intending purchasers are 
enabled to specify, accurately, the situation and 
quantity of the land they may wish to obtain.] 

3. One month's public notice shall be given of 
the time when any portion of public lands will 
first become open to purchase. 

j^This provides against any one obtaining an 
advantage over another by applying for land until 
all shall have had time to examine the district to 
be sold.] 

4. On some fixed day of every week, and at 
some fixed hour, the Land-office shall be opened 
for the purpose of deciding upon ap.piications for 
land. All applications must be made by sealed 
tender, by filling up a printed form, which will be 
supplied at the Land- office. Each tender must 
specify, by reference to the map, the section or 
sections for which the intending purchaser applies. 
All sections included in the same tender must 
adjoin each other. All tenders will be opened in 
public, and those received on the same day will be 
opened at the same time. Such tenders as do not 
comprise any section included in any other tender, 
shall be first disposed of. 

When the same section shall be named in two 



SOUIH AUSTliALIA. 



295 



cr more tenders, that tender shall be preferred 
which comprises the greatest quantity of land. 
When one or more sections shall be named in two 
or more tenders, comprising equal quantities of 
land, then the tender to be preferred, shall be 
decided by lot. Any one holding one or more 
land orders under the preliminary sales, and wish^ 
ing to delay his riglit of selection, as regards the 
rural land, may do so on condition, that the selec- 
tion, when made, shall be in conformity, in all 
respects, with the regulations at such time in force, 
the party being considered as having paid for the 
quantity of land contained in his order or orders, 
and not previously claimed ; but in all other 
respects being placed on an exact equality with the 
parties then purchasing. 

The quantity of land required to complete an 
integral number of sections to be paid for ai the 
price of the day. 

[[This renders the mode in which land is dis- 
posed of perfectly fair to all intending purchasers. 
By means of the tender, the purchaser is secured 
against all unfair competition by other persons, 
who might, if the application was made in public, 
endeavour to obtain the same land, merely because 
it was known that the first applicant had taken 
the trouble to make a good selection. 

In order to prevent as much as possible obstacles 
to the after sale of large unbroken blocks of land, 
it is required that all sections included in the same 
tender shall adjoin each other. This, however, 
by no mean-^ prevents distinct applications from the 
same party for the purchase of sections not adjoining. 

The commissioners, in giving the preference to 
those tenders which comj)rise the greatest quantity 
of land, only carry into etlfect the principal object 
of the South Australian Act, viz., that tliere shall 



296 



AUSTRALASIA. 



be no limit or check to the appropriation of land, 
but that the greatest quantity applied for shall be 
immediately sold.] 

5. The sole condition of purchase shall be the 

payment of money, at the rate of sterling per 
acre ; aiid nothing^ whether above or helow the sur- 
face, loill he reserved hy the Crown. Five per cent, 
on the amount of the purchase-money shall be de- 
posited at the time of making the tender, and the 
remainder shall be paid within one week of the 
.sale, if the remainder of the purchase-money be 
not paid witl^in the time specified, the land shall 
be again open to purchase, and the deposit shall be 
forfeited. 

[^To determine the price of land was the most 
difficult duty the commissioners had to perform^ 
and was likewise the most important ; for upon 
the correctness of that determination depended the 
sufficiency or insufficiency of labour, and the extent 
to wliich it could be combined, and thereby ren- 
dered efficient. At the same time, it was considered 
desirable to place the price rather too low than too 
high, as a future advance could injure no one.] 

6. Leases of the pasturage of unsold lands shall 
be granted, on the following conditions, among 
others : — The term to be three years, the tenant 
havino; a right of renewal in preference to any other 
applicant. 

Cultivation of the soil and the felling of timber 
to be disallowed. The land, or any portion of it, 
to be liable to sale, and if it be sold, the lease to 
terminate on a notice of two months, the tenant 
having a right of renewal to unsold portions. 

The yearly rent to be 40s. sterling per square 
mile, but this regulation not to apply to proprietors 
of land contracted to be purchased before the 31st 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



297 



of August, 1836. No lease to contain any frac- 
tional part of a square mile of pasturage. 

[[This regulation affords the greatest facility for 
the growing of wool, and the rearing of live stock. 
By the low price of pasturage one means is pro- 
vided for a mode of production which has been so 
eminently successful in the neighbouring settlements 
of New South Wales and Yan Dieman's Land, 
while the price of £ 1 per acre for land in posses- 
sion provides another facility, viz., shepherds, not 
being convicts, but persons brought up to the 
management of sheep and cattle. Without an 
ample supply of pastoral labourers, the lowness of 
rent for pasturage would be of very little benefit 
to the colonist. J 

7. Any one who shall hereafter pay in advance 
to the proper officer, eitlier in England or in the 
colony, the price of 4000 acres of land, or upwards, 
shall have a right, for every 4000 acres thus paid 
for, to call on the colonial commissioner to direct 
the survey of any compact district within the 
colony, of an extent not exceeding 15,000 acres ; 
and within fourteen days after the publication of 
such surveys at the land office, to select his land 
from any part of such district before any other 
applicant. If two parties should apply at the 
same time for the same survey, the decision be- 
tween them shall be according to Rule 4. 

8. An accurate statement of all purchases of 
land made, and leases of pasturage granted, speci- 
fying the quantity and station in each case, the 
name of the purchaser or tenant, shall be publisiied 
from time to time in the Colonial Gazette." 

The following are tlie Regulations for the Selectkm 
of Emigrant Labourers : — 
1. The act of Parlianjent declares that the whole 
of the funds arising from the sale of land and the 
P 2 



298 



AUSTRALASIA. 



rent of pasturage shall form an emigration fand, 
to be employed in affording a free passage to the 
colony from Great Britain and Ireland f(jr poor 
persons, "provided that they shall, as far as pos- 
sible, be adult persons of the two sexes, in equal 
])roportions, and not exceeding the age of thirty 
} ears/' 

2. With a view to carrying this provision into 
effect., the commissioners offer a free passage to the 
new colony, including provisions and every expense 
on the voyage, to persons of the following descrip- 
tion ; — 

3. Agricultural labourers, shepherds, bakers, 
blacksmiths, braziers, and tinmen, smiths, ship- 
wrights, boat-builders, butchers, wheel- wrights, 
sawyers, cabinet-makers, coopers, curriers, furriers, 
mill- Wrights, harness makers, boot and shoemakers, 
tanners, brick makers, lime burners, and all per- 
sons engaged in the erection of buildings. 

4. Persons engaged in the above occupations, 
who may apply for a free passage to South Aus-^ 
tralia^ must be able to give satisfactory references 
to show that they are honest, sober, industrious, 
and of general good character, and they must fill 
up a form, to be obtained at the office of the com- 
missioners, or of their agents in the country, and 
transmit it, properly attested, to the secretary. 

5. They must be rea,l labourers, going out to 
work for wages in the colony, of sound mind and 
body, not less than fifteen-, nor more than thirty, 
years of age, and married. 

6. To the wiv8s of such labourers as are tlms 
sent out, the commissioners offer a free passage 
with their husbands. 

7. To single women a free passage will be grant- 
ed, provided they go out under the protection of 
their parents or near relatives. The preference 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



21)9 



will be given to those accustomed to farm and dairy- 
work, to sempstresses, straw-platfcers, and domes- 
tic servants. 

8. The children of parents sent out by the com- 
missioners will receive a free passage, if they are 
under one, or full fifteen years of age. For eacli 
child between the age of one and fifteen £3 must 
be paid by the parents or friends, or by the parish. 
Ti)e commissioners cannot in any way become re- 
sponsible for it. 

9. Emigrants will, for the most part, embark 
at the port of London, but if any considerable num- 
ber should offer themselves in the neighbourhood 
of any port of Great Britain or Ireland, arrange- 
ments will, if possible, be made for their embarka- 
tion at such port. 

10. The expense of reaching the vessel and 
taking their baggage on board must be borne by 
the emigrants, but on the day appointed for their 
embarkation they will be received, even though 
the departure of the ship should be delayed, and 
w^ill be put to no further expense. 

11. Every adult emigrant is allowed to take 
half a ton weight, or twenty measured cubic feet 
of baggage. Extra luggage is charged 50s. the 
ton. 

12. The emigrants must provide the bedding 
for themselves and children, and the other articles 
most useful for emigrants to take with them are, 
strong plain clothing, and the lighter and most ne- 
cessary tools of their own trades. 

1 8. On the arrival of emigrants in the colony, 
they will be received by an officer, who will sup- 
ply their immediate wants, assist them in reaching 
the place of their destination, be ready to advise 
with them in case of difficulty, and at all times 
give them employment, at reduced wages^ on the 



300 



AUSTRALASIA. 



government work, if from any cause they should 
be unable to obtain it elsewhere. 

14. When emigrant labourers arrive in the 
colony, they will be at perfect liberty to engage 
themselves to any one willing to employ them, and 
will make their own bargain for wages. This 
arrangement, while it leaves the emigrant free to 
act as he may think right, manifestly renders it 
impossible for the commissioners to give, any 
exact information as to the amount of wages to be 
obtained ; they can merely state that in all new 
colonies, particularly in the neighbouring settle- 
ments of New South Wales and Yan Dieman's 
Land, wages are much higher than in England. 

15. Persons who are ineligible to be conveyed 
out by the emigration fund may, unless disquali- 
fied on account of character, accompany the emi- 
grants on payment of the passage-money, which, 
for a grown-up person, is about £20. The charge 
made by owners of ships for the passage of children 
Vary, but the following may be taken as an 
averac^e : — 



Uncler one year of age, 
One, and under six, 
Six years of age, 
Seven years of age. 



Kg charge, 
£5 
7 
7 



and so on to fifteen, for w^hich the charge is £20, 
the same as for a grow^n-up person. 

16. Persons going out at their own cost to oc- 
cupy land, or to engage in business, may obtain a 
free passage for their children and other dependents, 
provided that such children or other dependents 
go out as bona Jide labourers, to work for their 
parents or others, and that they conform in age, 
and in every other particular, to the rules here 
laid down. 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



301 



17. Purchasers of land in this country will be 
allowed the privilege of selecting servants and 
labourers for a free passage, at the rate of one for 
every pound expended in land, provided that the 
selection is made within a reasonable time, that it 
is in conformity with the existing regulations for 
the selection of emigrant labourers, and that there 
is at the time a want of labour in the colony. 

18. Any emigrant capitalist, or other party, who 
may be desirous of fitting out a vessel for the colony 
from any port in Great Britain or Ireland, will he 
allowed to carry out, at the charge of the commis- 
sioners, .any approved emigrants who may offer 
themselves in the neighbourhood of such port, pro- 
vided that the arrangements for securing the com- 
forts and safety of the emigrants on their passagt^ 
are approved of by tlio commissioners, and that the 
charge per head does not exceed that for emigrants 
leaving the port of London. 

Agents for the sale of land in South Australia 
have been appointed by the colonization commis- 
sioners at the following places. They are supplied 
with the printed regulations, certificates, &c., and 
will at all times furnish every information required. 

England. — Arundel, Ashburton, Bedford, Bir- 
mingham, Boston, Bristol, Bromsgrove, Canter- 
bury, Chichester, Derby, Eriswell, Exeter, Fal- 
mouth, Gosport, Guernsey, Halifax, Harlow, Hert- 
ford, Hull, Ipswich, Jersey, Leamington, Leeds, 
Lewes, Liverpool, London, Lymington, Maidstone, 
Monmouth, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nottingham, 
Oxford, Penzance, Plymouth, Portsea, Portsmouth, 
Reading, Shrewsbury, Southampton, Stockbridge, 
Tavistock, Winchester, Worthing, Yarmouth. 

Scotland. — Cupar, Clyde (port of), Dundee, 
Glasgow, Haddington, Inverness, Leith, Montrose, 
Perth, Stirling, St. Andrews. 



302 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Ireland, — -Cork, Dungannon, Limerick, Tralee. 

Before entering upon the history of South Aus- 
tralia, we will lay before our rea<ier3 an extract 
from the report of a speech delivered hy Colonel 
Torrens, in the House of Commons, 15th February 
1837, on the motion for the re-appointmeDt of the 
select committee on emigration. 

" I am not only prepared to show that emigra- 
tion would cost less than maintaining paupers in 
tlieir parishes at home, and w-ould thus prove 
a measure of permanent economy and retrench- 
ment — I am prepared to go much further than this. 
I am prepared to prove, both theoretically and 
practically, that emigration may be so conducted 
as to replace, with interest, the whole of the ex- 
penditure incurred in effecting it, and to aid the 
linances of the country, by opening new and not 
inconsiderable sources of public reyenue. 

It can be proved from the known properties 
of land, that a judiciously conducted emigration, 
besides creating the means of replacing the expen- 
diture it cost, miorht occasion an increase of revenue. 
Land capable of producing a quantity of produce, 
greater than the quantity expended in cultivating 
it, acquires exchangeable value, even while in an 
unreclaimed and forest state, as soon as population 
and capital approach. While government advances 
capital to the redundant population emigrating to 
the colony, it would at the same time be able to 
sell, at constantly advancing prices, land adjacent 
to the locations and townships it established. — 
Lender proper management the sale of crown lands 
in the colonies might be made a considerable 
source of revenue. Who would undertake to cal- 
culate the amount to which this revenue might be 
raised ? Who would venture to name the sum 
which the treasury would receive for lands as tlie 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



503 



tide of population and capital flowed on from the 
Canadian lakes to the Northern Pacific, and as 
the immeasurable plaijis of Australia became the 
seat of a British nation ? 

These are not the doubtful conjectures of spe- 
culative theory, they are the certain conclusions of 
actual experience. Should any honourable mem- 
ber conceive that I am departing from the strict 
sobriety of fact, let him look to the United States 
of North America, and learn from the 'practical 
men of that untheorising country, the gigantic 
scale upon which emigration and colonization may 
be beneficially carried on. The population of 
these States is nearly 12,000,000 ; it doubles in a 
period of about twenty- five years, and the main 
annual increase may be taken at half a million. 
Now% of this half million annually added to the 
population, the far greater proportion annually 
emigrate to the Western Territory. Here their 
capital rapidl}^ accumulates, the forest recedes be- 
iore them, villages and tov^ns rise as by encliant- 
ment, and the unreclaimed and unappropriated 
lands, bordering upon the perpetually extending 
circle, successively acquire exchangeable value, 
and are sold by the government for increasing 
amounts. 

i find, from an inspection of the documents 
accompanying the President's message to Congress, 
that it is stated, in the Report of the Commissioner 
of the general Land- Office, that the quantity of 
land, purchased by individuals, from the govern- 
ment, during the last year, was 1,274,644 acres; 
and that the payments made into the Treasury, on 
account of the sale of public lands, amounted to 
2,151),ir59 dolhirs. 

Will it be said tliat England cannot do in her 
colonies what America is doing in her western 



.304 



AUSTRALASIA. 



forests ? If a coDsiderable and increasing reyeDne 
be derived from the sale of unappropriated lands 
in the State of Ohio, on the American side of the 
laJces^ is it unreasonable, is it yisionary to expect 
that a similar revenue may be obtained from the 
sale of similar lands in Upper Canada, on the 
English side of the lakes ? In Upper Canada, the 
soil, the climate, and the commercial position, are 
little, if at all, inferior to those of the State of 
Ohio. Canada, in proportion to her wealth and 
population, has advanced not less rapidly than the 
United States. Citizens of the United States 
have crossed the lakes in considerable numbers, 
and have taken up their domicile within the Ca- 
nadian frontier, rather than locate themselves on 
the unappropriated lands of the Union. From all 
these facts the inference is conclusive and irre- 
sistible, that a well regulated emigration to British 
America would, in a short period, not only replace 
the advances by which it had been effected, but 
bestow upon the unappropriated land, in the 
neiorhbourhood of its locations, an exchangeable 
value, which would yield a clear revenue to tiie 
state. 

*' With respect to our Australian colonies, the 
evidence that a direct emigration to them would 
replace its own expenses, is not so direct; but in 
the absence of experimental, we have the highest 
degree of presumptive proof. The prosperity of 
the United States and Canada has been outstrip- 
ped by tlie yet more rapid growth of the important 
colonies of New South Wales and Yan Dieman'a 
Land; the climate of Australia is confessedly superior 
to that of Xorth America; colonists in New South 
Wales would require less substantial habitations, 
and less expensive clothinof than in Canada ; their 
lands would be less heavily timbered ; they could 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



305 



work all the year ; their fine wool, would furnish a 
valuable staple for exportation ; their vicinity to 
the great eastern archipelago, to India, and to 
China, would open to tljein the prospect of an 
almost boundless commerce. All these advantages 
might be expected to counterbalance the first dis- 
advantage of a longer and more expensive voyage. 
If an extensive emigration to New South Wales 
would, in the first instance, be more costly than 
one of similar magnitude to British America, the 
repayments would be earlier and more rapid ; 
while the value which the influx of population and 
capital bestowed upon the fertile plains of Austra- 
lia might be expected to open a source of very 
considerable revenue from the sale of crown 
lands. 

I will now conclude. I venture to hope that 
in the course of the observations which I have 
made, I have proved to the satisfaction of the 
House, the expediency of an extensive emigration 
from the United Kingdom to the colonies. Such 
an emigration, judiciously conducted, v/ould, I am 
fully persuaded, be the appropriate remedy — the 
true specific — for the deep-seated disease which 
afSicts our social system. It would remove the 
difficulties which now render improvement impos-- 
sible ; it would prepare the way for the consolida- 
tion of farms in Ireland, and for an amended ad- 
ministration of the poor-laws in England : and 
would thus, while correcting the evils of a redun- 
dant population, efi'ectually prevent their future 
recurrence. Such an emigration, too, would be a 
measure of economy and retrenchment, and a 
source of groii:)ing revenue. The expense of locating 
the able-bodied poor in the colonies would be less 
than that of maintaining them at home ; the rapid 



AUSTRALASIA. 



re-production of capital, wlien applied to fertile 
soil, would enable them in a short time to replace 
the expenses of their first est?tb]isliment ; ir/iile the 
mlue which the infiux of an industrious population 
hestowed upon the colonial lands^ at the disposal of 
the crown^ would become a permanent source of na- 
tional revejiiie^ and of clear and unhought advanUige 
to the country. While we legislate for our country, 
we may be permitted to rejoice in the brightening 
prospects of the world ; while our chief aim should 
be to endeavour to do good in our generation, we 
may be allowed to exult in the thought, and to 
derive a heightened ardour from the consideration 
tliat the beneficial influence of our measures may 
extend to the generations that are to con^e. In 
Time's resistless revolutions, that which is now 
British Ameiica will be a confederation of nev/ 
independent States, stretcliing from the St. Law- 
rence to the Pacific, and rivalling their eider 
brethren south of the interior waters; and the vast 
insular continent of New Holland, more populous 
than Europe, must cease to he an appendage cf 
the British Isles. But throughout these extensive 
and remotest regions of the world the British race, 
language, and institutions will prevail. In giving 
effect to extensive and improved plans of coloniza- 
tion, we are multiplying the British nation ; we 
are rocking the cradles of giant empires ; we are 
eo-operating with the schemes of Providence ; and 
are its favoured instruments in causing Christian 
civilization to 'cover the earth as the waters cover 
the sea.' I give my most cordial assent to the 
original motion, believing, as I do, that emigration 
is the most important subject which can come 
under the consideration of Parliament; and iju - 
pressed with the conviction that the honourable 



SOUTLi AUSTRALIA. 



807 



member who has brought forward the resolution 
w^ith so much ability and zeal, deserves to be 
ranked amomg the benefactors of his country and 
of mankind/' 

South Australia, as we have already said is situ- 
ai-.ed in a south-eastern direction along the southern 
shore of Australia, comprehending the space between 
the 132nd and 141 st degrees of east longitude, being 
the limits of the colony, which in a straight line 
comprise a distance of 500 miles ; the extent of 
coast, including the coasts of Kangaroo Island and 
the shores of Lake Aiexandrina, amounts to about 
2,150 miles; and between the eastern extremity of 
Lake Aiexandrina and Cape Wiles, the distance 
in a straight line being about 220 miles, the extent 
of land, washed either by the ocean or the waters 
of the lake, amounts to about 1,400 miles. It lies 
between Swan River and New South Wales, and 
forms an extent of country nearly double that of 
the British Isles, containing an area of 800.000 
square miles, or 192,000,000 acres. It is about 
fourteen v^eeks' sail from England,* or at nearly the 
same distance as the East Indies, and situated in 
the centre of the three principal, and several minor 
British Colonies in this part of the world ; Port 
Adelaide is only six days' sail from Launceston, on 
the north side of Van Dieman's Land, and twelve 
days' sail from Sydney, in New South Wales, as 
will be seen in the following table. 

The successful establishment of Ocean Steam communi- 
cation with our south-eastern colonies is of great Import- 
ance. The delays in coaling at the different stations con- 
siderably prolonged the passages of the Australian and 
Great Britain; this remedied, no doubt the voyage will 
be accomplished in less than ten wrecks. Full particulars 
of the different routes will be found in the Appendix. 



308 



AUSTRALASIA. 



TABLE OF SAILIN"G DISTAIS^CES FROM AXD TO 
POET ADELAIDE. 



Place. 



From Port 
Adelaide to 

Timor 

Java 

Madras 

Ceylon 

Isle of France 
C. of G. Hope 
Ed gland. .. ... 

Van D. Land. 
Sydney 

To Port Ade- 
laide from 

Timor 

Java 

Madras 

Ceylon 

Isle of France 
C. of a Hope 
England .... 
Launceston 
jSydney 



2,700 
2,659 
4,700 
4,500 
4.400 
6,000 
11,500 
800 
1,200 



2,700 
2,650 
4,700 
4,500 
4,400 
6,000 
11,500 
700 
1,200 



Winds. 



§ Proper 
•J-" i Sea.^ons. 



Favourable at all times, 
Ditto. 
Ditto. 
Ditto. 
Ditto. 
Ditto. 
Variable. 
Favourable. 
Favourable in general. 



Favourable at all times 

Favourable. 
Ditto by proper route. 

Ditto. 
Varia., gen. favourable. 
Strong and favourable. 
Ditto. 
Always easy. 



20 


All times. 


18 


Ditto. 


33 


Ditto. 


32 


Ditto. 


29 


Ditto. 


40 


Ditto. 


115 


Ditto. 


6 


Ditto. 


12 


Ditto. 



23 


All times. 


18 


Ditto. 


36 


Ditto. 


34 


Ditto. 


29 


Ditto. 


34 


Ditto. 


110 


Ditto. 


10 


Ditto. 


16 


Ditto. 



The coast of South Australia was first explored 
in the. year 1802, though very imperfectly, by 
Captain Flinders, by whom, with the assistance 
of Mr. Westall, who accompanied him, much in- 
formation w^as communicated. Captain Flinders 
remarks, he found in one part '•'much refuse from 
the shore, as well as sea- weed floating about, by 
which some hope of finding a river was commu- 
nicated and subsequently, besides quantities of 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



809 



grass, and branches of trees or bushes, floating in 
the water, there was a number of long gauze- 
winged insects topping about the surface, such as 
frequent fresh water lakes and swamps/' He also 
saw smoke rising in various places. In proof of the 
insufficiency of his survey, the captain says, " My 
examination was tolerably minute, to be done 
wholly in a ship ; but much still remained, which 
boats would best accomplish, to make the surveys 
complete, especially in the bays of the mainland." 

The next expedition to this coast, after Flinders, 
was under the command of Captains Bawdin and 
Freycinet, with whom was M. Peron, a naturalist 
of considerable note. This party fell in with Cap- 
tain Flinders at Encounter Bay, and thus, by a 
few days only, was the discovery of those magnifi- 
cent inlets. Spencer s and St. Vincent's Gulfs, an- 
ticipated by the British voyagers. 

Captain Dillon, the well-known discoverer of the 
remains of La Perouse, visited this part of the 
southern coast, in the year 1815 ; his object was 
principally commercial, and he remained in the 
neighbourhood for nearly three months. From 
the account of his voyage, which he published, we 
have obtained some valuable information. 

Captain Sutherland, who was for many years 
employed in the trade between England and Aus- 
tralia, and who, from being a landed proprietor in 
Van Dieman's Land, had resided there for a 
length of time, visited South Australia on a sail- 
ing voyage, in the year 1819. He remained at 
Kangaroo Island seven months, and published an 
account of his residence there, which is the more 
valuable as being the observation of a practical 
Australian agriculturist, as well as the work of an 
experienced navigator. He was also examined at 
considerable length before a committee appointed 



SIO 



AUSTKALASfA, 



! 



to investigate the natural circainptaiices of tlie 
locality ; and it is but justice to say, that the ver- 
bal evidence then given, tended completely to cor- 
roborate his written statement. 

Captain Goold, late master of H.M.S. Dryad^ 
and commander of several merchantmen, a most 
intelligent man, performed two voyages from Syd- 
ney to this coast in 1827-28. His object was the 
seal fishing. His report of the country generally, 
is very important, and its value is enhanced by tiie 
fact of his having lived some time in Australia, 
and was thus enabled to compare the different 
places he visited. 

Last in order of time, but perhaps first in im- 
portance, is the account of Captain Sturt, who 
traced a river through an unknown country, amidst 
great dangers and privations, to its joining the sea 
at Encounter Bay. 

The general appearance of South Australia from 
the sea, is of a far more inviting aspect than any 
other part of the coast of this vast continent, pre- 
senting an endless variety of beautifully verdant 
and secluded valleys, well watered and finely wooded 
plains, gently undulating, and rising towards the 
range of hills, in the back ground. The principal 
inlets on the coast are Fowler s bay. Denial Bay, 
Smoky Bay, Streaky Bay, Anxious Bay, Coffin's 
Bay ; and in Spencer s Gulf, which stretches f^ir to 
the south, indenting the latid with its watery 
wedge, are Port Lincoln and Hard wick Bay. 
Coming thence round Cape Spencer, vvo pass 
through Navigator's Strait into the Gulf of St. 
Vincent, on tlie eastern extremity of wdiich is 
situated the flourishing city of Adelaide. 

Tiie Gulf of St. Vincent is without island, rock, 
reef, or sand bank, excepting the Trowbridge shoal 
and those of Port Adelaide, wliich are timely in- 



SOUTH AUSTRALTA. 



SU 



timated by the water shoaling ; indeed, by means 
of the lead the whole gulf is navigable by a 
stranger in the darkest night ; it is protected from 
the heavy south sea by Kangaroo Island, an im- 
portant appendage to the province of South Aus- 
tralia. 

Kangaroo Island is about twelve miles south- 
west of Cape Jervis, and comprises an area of 
2,500,000 acres, containing some very fine pas- 
tures. The harbour of Nepean Bay is scarcely to 
be surpassed, and will afford accommodation for 
some hundreds of vessels. Ships of 700 tons bur- 
then can anchor within half a mile of the landing 
place. Kingscote^ the principal settlement of the 
South Australian Company, is situated on the 
point of land which divides the Bay of Shoals 
from Seal Bay, and has two miles of water front- 
age, one mile in each of these bays ; commanding 
a full view of Nepean Bay, from Point Marsden 
to Kangaroo Head, including the opposite coast of 
Cape Jervis. 

The country from Cape Jervis, up the Gulf St. 
Vincent, viewed from the sea is exceedingly pic- 
turesque, resembhng for the most part the finest 
parks in England — a resemblance which is made 
the more striking, from being similarly interspersed 
with magnificent trees, just numerous enough to 
add beauty to the land, without encumbering it. 
A little to the north-west of Cape Jervis is a small 
boat harbour, called by the natives " Pat Bungar." 
Low hills slope down on all sides of tijis little bay, 
after crossing which, there is level land of good 
quality, for a short distance, gradually descending 
into a valley of fine rich soil. This winds through 
the country to the northward, gradually tending 
to the west, and is open to the sea between high 



312 



AUSTRALASIA. 



bills, about two miles to the Dorth of " Pat 
Biingar/' 

About eight miles up the gulf, a little to the 
Dorth of the point, called " North- west High 
Bluff,'' is a small bay, named Rapid Bay, which 
is backed by a beautiful little Yalley surrounded 
by hills, from which a considerable stream is sup- 
plied, that runs through the yalley between banks, 
twenty or thirty feet high ; between this bay and 
the next, called Yanky Lilly, distant about seven 
or eight miles to the northward, there are three or 
four rich valleys, abounding in fresh water streams. 
The hills commencing at Cape Jervis terminate at 
Yanky Lilly Yalley. Above this valley the hills 
come down in a very bold manner to the sea. but 
soon recede again, leaving an undulating country 
for a few miles of a singular description. The 
different elevations have perfectly fiat tops, are 
covered with a very rich herbage, and are much 
more bare of trees than the previously mentioned 
hills. This portion of the coast terminates to tlie 
northward in a gentle slope, called by the natives, 
Aldinghi Plains. 

Until within two miles of these plains the coast 
is of the same picturesque character. A little to 
the southward are some extensive gravel pits, with 
deep chasms and gullies, having a very conspicuous 
appearance from the sea ; from these, a gentle 
slope of nearly a mile runs along the coast into the 
plains, with an extensive beach of sand and shingle, 
forming a very narrow bay, called Deception Bay. 
At the northern end is a remarkable detached rock, 
of a tabular form ; from this to within six miles of 
the inlet in Holdfast Bay, the coast is bold and 
rugged, with the exception of one small sandy bay 
into which a fresh water stream oozes ; and about 
four miles to the southward of this, and just i9 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



313 



tlie northward of the rock before mentioned, is the 
largest river that runs into the se;i on this side of 
the gulf. There is a bar at the entrance, over 
which boats can only pass at high water, and is 
salt as far as the tide flows, about three miles. 
There is no anchorage upon this part of the coast. 
The hills here form an arm from the Mount Lofty 
range coming down to the sea, lightly timbered, 
to the position dehcri!)ed as six miles from the inlet 
in Holdfast Bay, where they have the appearance 
of downs, and here the Glendg Plains may be said 
to commence. The range of mountains recede 
from the coast at this place, and so continue up- 
wards ; and a sandy beach commences, which ex- 
tends to Port Adelaide, and the coast then con- 
tinues low and sandy to the top of the gulf. 

The anchorage in Holdfast Bay is in latitude 
35 degrees. Mount Lofty due east by compass. 
The best anchorage for large ships is in five fiithoms, 
at about three miles distance from the landing. 
The holding ground is clay of a great consistency, 
and as the water shoals very gradually, a vessel 
must drag her anchor up hill for two or three 
miles before she can sustain anv damaoe. About 
the middle of the bay is an inlet of the sea, in 
which boats can enter and discharge their cargoes 
at high water. The upper part of the inlet, in the 
winter is fresh, partaking of tiie character of a 
fresh water river, having its source among the 
extensive lagoons in this neighbourhood. 

Port Adelaide lies about fourteen ?niles to the 
nortliward of Ploldfast Bay, the entrance to wldch 
is in latitude 34 deg. 45 min., between two extt^n- 
sive laud shoals, dry at luw water, through which 
is a cliannel, running in a semi-circuitous direction 
for three miles and a half. To enter tins channel 
a skoal of about 200 yards has to be passed, con- 
p 



314 



AUSTRALASIA. 



sisting of clay hummocks covered with sand, over 
which there is at low water, only two fathoms, 
having a rise and fall of six feet ; when over this 
shoal, the depth at low water carries from two 
fathoms and a half to five fathoms, and the width 
from three or four hundred yards to three quarters 
of a mile. In all parts there is complete shelter 
from any sea, as a vessel at low water is perfectly 
land-locked by hard sand, and apparently in a 
basin. The harbour then winds in nearly a due 
southerly direction for seven miles, the first two 
miles to the eastward being formed by an island 
(Torrens' Island) haying a channel running towards 
the east for a short distance, about the same width, 
but of a less depth of water (Angus' Inlet) ; it then 
runs to the north for a couple of miles, where it 
again makes a turn to the left, and flows into the 
sea, forming a northern entrance tt) the harbour, 
at about a mile and a half from the principal chan- 
nel above described. Off Torrens Island, for nearly 
a mile, is a shoal consisting of mud and sand, and 
the depth of water is much the same as on the 
shoal described at the entrance. After passing 
this the depth varies from three to three and a 
half fathoms, and in some places five fathoms at 
low water, to within half a mile of the landing 
place, where ships generally anchor in three fathoms. 
From Torrens' Island to the top of the port it has 
the appearance of a river, the sides being skirted 
witli mangrove trees, and excepting off the points 
(which are few, as there are but slight turns in all 
tills space), bold, and varying in width from half a 
mile to a mile. The land on the eastern side, 
called Fife Angus, is a mass of mangrove swamps, 
which is the cause of the landing place being se- 
lected so far up, being on a clear spot, from whence 



SOUTH AUSTi^'ALIA. 



315 



the extensive plain extends that is bounded by the 
river Torrens. 

The view from an elevated spot upon Torrens' 
Island is most extensive. Beyond the port the 
country is a perfect plain, stretching away to the 
north as far as the eye can reach, with the boldest 
and most elevated part of the Mount Lofty range 
of hills running at its eastern extremity, twelve or 
fifteen miles di!?tant, and closing in the view to the 
southward about twenty miles off, gradually bend- 
ing round, and terminating on the coast. The 
plain is in some places open, and covered with a 
iuxuria,nt herbage, and in others it is well wooded, 
affording to the eye the most pleasing relief and 
contrast. 

There is much discrepancy in the accounts of 
those wdio have visited Port Lincoln and its neigh- 
bourhoocl. Captain Flinders has but a poor opinion 
of that part of Australia as the site of a colony ; 
while the French navigators Baudin, and Freycinet, 
think differently. 

Spalding Cove, Port Lincoln, was visited by a 
person of the name of Hamborg, a mate of a seal- 
ing vessel, in 1832. He states that he anchored 
on the eastern side of the cove, in blue clay, with 
seven fathoms water, and that it is safe from all 
winds, being nearly land-locked. He went about 
a n)ile and a half inland, and found two streams of 
fine water, as clear as crystal, running into Spald- 
ing Cove, from the southward. Among the trees 
he noticed were cedar, beef-wood, tulip-wood, 
stringy-bark, iron-bark, and huon -pine. The grass 
was about knee deep, and in great quantity : it 
was quite green, and numbers of kangaroos and 
other animals were feeding on it ; the kangaroos 
were large, and as fat as he had seen elsewhere. 
The object of Hamborg's viait was to convey thither 



816 



AUSTKALASIA, 



a party of tliirty persons, with five boats and the 
necessary impleiueiits for catching whales. Thes^e 
people had been there three previous seasons for 
the same purpose, and had been successful. The 
black whale is very commonly met with close in 
shore ; the sperm whale not frequently being far- 
ther to the southward. Seals are very numerous. 
Hamborg also found a variety of fish, amongst 
which were grey njullet, red mullet, soles, mackerel, 
herrings, snappers, jew fish, salmon, trumpeters, 
parrot-fish, sting- ray, mussels, oysters, cockles, rock - 
cod, turtles, &c. The natives were numerous and 
peaceful; and assisted him in carrying water to 
the ship. For a little tobacco, and with kind 
treatment they work well. These natives depend 
for water on the two streams running into Spalding 
Cove. 

Of the climate," says Captain Flinders, we 
had no reason to speak but in praise ; nor were w^e 
incommoded by noxious insects. The range of the 
thermometer on board the ship was from 66 to 73 
degrees. On shore the average height of the 
thermometer at noon was 76 degrees." 

Captain Dillon landed at Port Lincoln, in 1815, 
and remained there two days. He reports favour- 
ably of the coast. The timber he saw v/as very 
large and abundant. The hills were covered with 
trees, and the land very fertile and productive. 

The accounts given of Port Lincoln by the 
French navigators are also very favourable. After 
describing its geographical position, they proceed 
to say : — 

On the western side of the gulf, and near it« 
entrance, is Champagny Port, (Port Lincoln) on© 
of the finest and most secure in New Holland ; 
in every part of it is an excellent bottom ; the 
depth of water.^ even close in with the land, is from 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



317 



ten to twelve fathoms (French), and such is the 
capacity of this magiiificeiit port, that it is com^ 
petent to receive tlie most numerous fleets. In 
front of this port is Langrange Inland (Boston 
Island) four or five leagues in circumference, and 
which, placed exactly in the mouth of the port, 
leaves on each side a passage from two lo three 
miles broad, in both which pa-^sages a vessel can 
work with ease and security. Finally, as if Nature 
were inclined in favour of Champagny Port, to 
change the character of monotony a fid barrenness 
stamped on the neighbouring lands, she has formed 
its shores of gently rising slopes, and clothed them 
with umbrageous forests. We did not find any- 
fresh water at this spot; but the vigour and liveli- 
ness of vegetation, and the height of the country 
were to us certain indices of the existence of some 
rivulets, or at least of some copious springs. On 
this the most favoured part of South Australia, 
there are certainly numerous tribes of inhabitants, 
for the whole country seemed in flames. So many 
exclusive advantages insure special importance to 
Port Champagny, and it may fearlessly be affirmed, 
that of all the points of tiiis land, this is the best 
adapted for the establislimeiit of an European 
colony." 

A second visit, made a few weeks later, strength- 
ened the impression in favour of this spot, and the 
subjoined description of the harbour given : — 

This harbour consists of tliree basins, in each 
of which there is not less than ten to twelve fathoms 
(French) water, with a bottom of muddy sand, 
and which, from their extent, would be capable of 
receiving the navies of all Europe. Boston Island 
is at the mouth of this admirable ])ort, and it forms 
with the continent two passages in eacli of which 
the largest ships of war might work with safety. 



olS 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The Dortliern passage is the narrowest, and opens 
into Boston Bay ; the southern is larger, and opens 
on one side into the western basin, and on the 
other into Spalding Cove. Between the island and 
the niainland is the channel Degerando, which 
e>tabiifeiies a direct communication between the 
three basins, and wiiich at the same time offers 
excellent njoorings for the most numerous fleets. 
Two small islands, placed at the mouth of the 
southern basin, likewise afford good shelter. The 
same may be said of Grantham Island, with regard 
to the western basin. Shall w^e repeat here what 
we have already said as to the fertility of the soil? 
Shall we speak of the valleys which seem to denote 
corresponding springs or brooks of fresh water ? 
]s it necessary for us to insist u])on those numerous 
fires, vt'hich our companions, in approaching the 
port, observe on all the neighbouring declivities, 
and which would seem to attest the existence at 
this spot of a population much more numerous 
than on the other points of the south-west coast? 
Worthy to rival Port Jackson, Port Lincoln is, 
under every point of view, one of the finest har- 
bours in the w^orld ; and of all those discovered by 
us, whether on the south, the west, or the north 
of New Holland, it appears, w-e repeat it, to be 
the best adapted to receive an European colony." 

Captain Goold, whose knowledge of Australia 
is very extensive, having been round the whole of 
the island ; but is more particularly acquainted 
with Swan River, King George's Sound, Port 
Jackson, and Hunter's liiver. Comparing Boston 
Bay with these places, he says, that the land of 
ijone of them can be compared with it, excepting 
Hunter's River, which is well known to be the 
garden and granary of New South Wales. He 
declares the harbour, soil, climate, position for 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



319 



commerce, and its vicinity to be excellent fishing 
grounds, all adapted to render the formation of a 
colony there highly desirable. 

The principal information relative to York's 
Peninsula has been obtained from Captains Suther- 
land and Goold ; the former of whom resided in 
tlie neighbourhood for several months. The soil 
was thickly covered with timber and brushwood. 

Captain Goold landed about twenty miles south 
of Point Riley, for the purpose of sliooting kanga- 
roos. He went about five miles inland, through 
an open forest country. The soil was a light, 
sandy loam, about two feet deep, upon a bed of 
oyster shells and gravel. In the course of his 
walk lie fell in with a lagoon, about two miles from 
the shore, and endeavoured to wade it, but finding 
it too deep, he returned and attempted to round 
it ; in this, however, he was disappointed, for after 
walking about another mile, he fell in with a river 
running south, towards Hard wick Bay. The 
water of the river was very clear and good ; the 
stream itself was about fifty yards wide, eight feet 
deep, and running a strong current. The captain 
did not attempt to trace it ; but finding he could 
not get round the lagoon, he returned to the boat. 

Between Corney Point and Point Pearce, twenty- 
eight miles to the north-north-east, is a large bay, 
well sheltered from all southern winds; none others 
seem to blow with much strength here. The land 
bends eastward about seven leagues from Corney 
Point to the head of the bay. 

Kangaroo Island has been more thoroughly ex- 
amined than any other part of the southern coast 
of Australia by Captain Sutherland, who resided 
on this island during seven months. He says — 

Twenty ships could moor within a hundred 
yards of the shore, and the same number anchor iu 



h20 



AUSTRALASIA. 



safety farther off, the water being always smooth, 
sheltered by the hiiid from the north-west, and 
from the southward by Kangaroo Head, and fronj 
the north-east by Sutherland's Shoal, extending 
from the point below Point Marsden about six 
miles, always dry at baif-ebb for nearly tlie whole 
distance. The shore is thickly lined with wof)d 
and shrubs, interspersed with several high liills, 
protecting the anchorage; the opposite coast on 
the main is Cape Jervis, which I should judge to 
be about fourteen or fifteen miles from the first 
anchorage, but nearer to Kangaroo Head by three 
or four miles. The main land here is very bigb, 
and at the head of the bay wears every appearance 
ef an inlet or river. ' 

Tlie land, according to Captain Sutherland, lias 
every appearance of fertility ; a deep loam with 
coarse grass, abounding with kangaroos and emus. 
Where these animals feed, the grass is generally 
excellent for pasture ; occasional pools of rain water 
are seen, and a plentiful supply of good spring 
water is easily attained by digging for it. The 
land here," says the captain, is as good as any 1 
have seen in Yan Dieman's Land. In the neighbour- 
hood of Sydney 1 have not observed any equal to 
it. Trees are scattered everywhere over the plains 
— the swamp -oak or beef- wood and the wattle, 
both of which indicate good land, are growing in 
abundance. Close on the shore, wHthin fi'om a 
quarter to half a mile from the sea, the wood is 
very thick, but when this belt of w^ood is passed, 
you come on to an open country, covered with 
grass, where there are often hundreds of acres 
without a tree. I calculated, by comparison with 
New South Wales and Yan Dieman's Land, there 
might be on this plain, on an average three or four 
trees to an acre. I once crossed the island, a dis- 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



321 



tance of about sixty miles, in two days. Once 
passed the belt of wood which surrounds the 
island, we walked straight on end over the plains, 
found plenty of water in ponds, saw abundance of 
kangaroos and emus, and nset with no difficulty or 
trouble. As we crosi^ed the island, 1 looked. to the 
right and left, and saw every vv' here the same open 
plains, now and then changed in appearance by 
clo^^e timber of great height, on high points and 
ridges of land. In some places we found the grass 
very high, and coarse in patches, but where the 
greatest number of kangaroos and emus was found 
the grass was short and close. In the other places, 
close short grass was found between the coarse 
high patches. 

While crossing the island, we saw plenty of 
parrots and wild pigeons, and black swans on the 
lagoons. 

With the exception of salt, tinsber appears to 
be the principal production, we have observed, of 
this place. 1 he trees are the same as at New 
South Wales ainl Yan Dieman's Land ; some run 
exceedingly high, and large in circumference, and 
may be converted into every domestic purpose, as 
well as maritime ; as many may be found and 
i^ejected for ships' spars, and other purposes of 
ship building. Twenty 3'ears ago an American 
ship w^as cast away on the coaj^t, and the crew 
built a schooner in Lagoon Bay, which enabled 
them to get away, after a residence of several 
moiitlis on the island. Salt is produced here in 
abundance ; 1 should say between two and three 
hundVed tons could be collected from the lagoon 
with a little attention ; the distance to the beach 
is about three- quarters of a mile, and from the 
beech to where ^hips anchor about four miles. 
Tiii^ lagoon is a perfect circle, of about three miles 

A' 2 



322 



AUSTRALASIA, 



in circnniference. The prospect here is very plea- 
sant. Close to the salt-water lake, is another of 
fresh, but considerably smaller. It was at this 
spot our people erected their tents, while collecting 
the salt. Pigeons and kangaroos make their ap- 
pearance here regularly, morning and evening, for 
water, so that we were well supplied with fresh 
provisions, with very little trouble. 

" My attention was next directed to the lime-stone 
of the island ; in several places I found it plentiful, 
but not generally over the country. Freestone 
and granite are also in large quantities, so that 
people emigrating to this country would find every 
necessary, as in Europe and both the other colonies. 

The climate appeared to be very temperate, 
and not subject to oppressive heat, nor do the 
rains fall in torrents, as at Sydney; the dews are 
heavy, but not injurious to health, which we had 
ample opportunity of proving, owing to the fre- 
quent exposure of our men, many of whom slept 
un<ler trees and bushes several nights together, and 
although almost wet through, never experienced 
any ill effects. I had fifteen men under my com- 
mand, and though they were of a class of people 
who take no care of themselves, not one of them 
was ill during our stay, nor did my own health 
suffer at all, though I was exposed to all weathers, 
both night and day. 

^' January, the month in which T reached the 
island, is the middle of summer ; and the autumn 
and winter elapsed during our stay. In the winter 
it appeared to be much less cold than in Tan Die- 
man's Land, and I observed, generally, that the 
changes of temperature are less sudden and fre- 
quent than in New South Wales. 

" The winds there are regular land and sea 
breezes, with occasional calms ; during the winter 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



323 



months strong south-westerly winds prevail, but 
are not of any duration, and cannot throw any 
?ea into the anchorages to injure the shipping, 
they being completely land-locked. A vessel, on 
making for this island, must be careful not to stand 
too close to the shore, until they ascertain their 
true position ; as several dangers are still unex- 
plored on the southern part of tlie island ; this f 
would leave entirely to the judgment of the navi- 
gator, who ought always to be guided by circum- 
stances. 

There are no harbours on the south side of the 
island ; but in fine weather, a ship may anchor for 
a few hours in any place along the coast, but must 
always be ready to slip in case of the appearance of 
bad weather. There are no natives on the island; 
several Europeans assembled there ; some who 
have run from ships that traded for salt ; others 
from Sydney and Yan Dieman's Land, who were 
prisoners of the crown. These gan^s joined after 
a lapse of time, and became the terror of sljips 
going for salt, &c., being little better than pirates. 
They are complete savages, living in bark huts 
like the natives, not cultivating anything, but 
living entirely upon kangaroos, emus, and small 
porcupines, and getting spirits and tobacco iu 
barter for the skins, which they lay up during the 
sealing season. They dress in kangaroo skins, 
without linen, and wear sandals made of seals' 
skins. They smell like foxes. They have carried 
their daring acts to an extreme, venturing on the 
main land in their boats, and seizing on the natives, 
particularly the women, and keeping them in a 
state of slavery, cruelly beating them on every 
trifling occasion ; and when, at last, some of these 
niarauders were taken off the island by an expedi- 
tion from New South Wales, the women were 



324 



AUSTRALASIA. 



landed on the main, with tiieir children and dogs, 
to procure subsistence, not knosving how tlieir own 
people might treat them after a hjng absence." 

Such is Captain Sutherland's description of 
Kangaroo Island ; but other travellers do not 
appear to giv^e so favourable an account. 

Mr. Leigh, in his Journal, says, The soil of 
this island, in the vicinity of Kingscote, is com- 
posed of sand left by the retiring sea, mixed 
with a small portion of vegetable mould. The 
want of rain unon land so dry renders it impossible 
to produce vegetables, except during the rainy 
season. About two or three hundred yards from 
the sea, good soil is found, where young potato 
plants and peas will tiirive ; but no sooner is the 
rain over than the earth is heated to that degree 
that every vegetable perishes. 

Nine miles in the interior there are belts of 
iron and limestone running through the island, in 
the interstices of which good soil is frequently 
fouttd, sufficient for the growth of exQ^llent corn. 
In so'Me parts of the island a quantity of kangaroo 
grass shoots up during the rainy season, on vvhicii 
oxen can be fed. it is possible that potatoes may 
be grown, but perhaps to no great size. In the 
gard€HS of some of t!ie settlers are to be found 
cresses and small salad. 

" This island has been famous for its kangaroos 
(from whence it derived its name), but at present 
they are very scarce ; the few that remain, bow- 
ever, are hunted by the new^ colonists. Snakes, 
from the circumstance of the island being one 
i?iatted bush, are most abundant ; and are seen 
winding along in all directions. Tarantulas, scor- 
pions, and musquitoes, are very numerous. 

" There are abundance of eagles, pelicans, cor- 
morants, crows, magpies, robin-red- breasts, swal- 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA- 



325 



lows, and small birds remarkable for the brilliancy 
and variety of their plumage.'* 

Climate^ Seasons^ S^c. — Australia being situated 
at the opposite end of tlie globe, has the effect of 
reversing the seasons in their relation to tho^e 
in England. Their summer is our December, 
January, and February ; and the atmosphere 
during this period, though much heated during 
the day, is not at all debilitating in its effects on 
the constitution, owing to the cool bracing breeze 
which sets in with the evening ; their winter is 
our June, July, and August, but which is rather 
a season of rain than of snow ; there are sometimes 
slight frosts, all traces of which disappear on tlie 
rising of the sun. A fire is agreeable during these 
months, in the morning and evening. Australia 
being situated so much further east than England, 
again affects the relations of time, with regard to 
day and night. The sun rises there about tea 
hours sooner than with us ; thus when it is five 
o'clock in the evening in Australia, it is only three 
o'clock in the morning with us. These changes, 
however, coming gradually upon the voyages* 
thither, he is unconscious of their leaking place, 
and is made aware of that which has occurred in 
the position of the seasons only by the names of 
the months. 

The temperature at noon Is higher than it usually 
is in England at the same time, in the correspond- 
ing seasons, but there is little difference in the 
temperature of the mornings and evenings. 1'he 
sky is usually clear and i)rilliant, and the atmos- 
phere dry, pure, and elastic. Fogs are seldom 
seen ; a haze soinetimes hangs over the lagoons 
and rivers in the summer season, but these aie 
speedily disposed hy the first rays of the sun. 

It is unnecessary to go into any detail to prove 



S26 



AUSTKALASIA. 



the excellence of tbe climate of South Australia, 
the salubrity generally being well known and 
universally admitted. It may, however, be men- 
tioned, that persons rarely feel any ill effects 
from sleeping on the ground, and that coughs 
and colds are almost totally unknown. A slight 
kind of opthalmia is tbe only disease peculiar 
to the climate; and five cases out of six of this 
occurred during the early days of the settlement, 
when the people were badly sheltered, suffering 
from great fatigue,^ and exposed to a hot sun. The 
care, however, is simple and effectual ; except with 
the ignorant and obirtinate. The invigorating 
influence of this climate generally on the human 
constitution, renders it more fit for invalids, espe- 
cially Europeans, than any other in the world. 

Natural Productions^ S^^c. — Timber forms an im- 
portant part of the spontaneous productions of 
South Australia. 

The Blue Gum is found in great abundance ; 
those of the largest dimensions growing near the 
rivers and fresh w^ater lagoons. The timber is 
heayy, with a close compact grain, and of a red 
colour. Specmiens which hare been brought home 
very much resemble fine Spanish mahogany. 
White Gum is also abundant ; it is cf a light 
colour, and the grain not so compact as the blue 
gum. It is a tough wood, and will probably make 
good flooring and weather boards, and may be use- 
ful for wheelwrights* work. The Stringy Bark is 
a most useful tree to the colonists. The bark being 
of a fibrous texture, and parting easily from the 
wood, renders it very useful in constructing huts or 
temporary buildings. The wood itself is of a browu 
colour, good quality, splits and saws well, and is 
exceedingly useful in building, fencing, paling, (fcc. 
Besides these, there are al^o the cedar, oak, pine, 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



5-27 



tea- tree wattle, and other trees common to the 
other colonies. The leaves of the tea-tree have 
been used as a beverage when gathered and dried, 
which, though not equally good, is little inferior to 
the tea of China. 

The foliage of the trees is of a dark somhi e 
green, the trunks for the most part bare, and limbs 
scraggy ; and when standing isolated, the appear- 
ance generally is not very beautiful, but when they 
stand in clumps this defect is not discernible. 

Of shrubs and flowers there are very great va- 
rieties, many of which will, no doubt, eventual! v 
afford important materials for chemical and 
medicinal purposes. 

The grasses and wild herbage are not the least 
valuable productions of South Australia; tlie 
kangaroo grass grows very luxuriantly, and sheej) 
fatten on it very rapidly. There are several 
varieties of rib grass, also chicory, trefoil, barnt t, 
and some other herbs which stand the winter, imd 
in that season afford good food for sheep. 

In 1846, indications of gold were found on a 
section comprising 147 acres, at a distance of ten 
miles from Adelaide, and a company was immedi- 
ately formed, called the "Victoria Gold Company." 
Soon after the operations of the company com- 
menced, a vein of auriferous gossan was discovered 
in the principal shaft, and at length it was found 
impregnated wdth native gold of almost perfect 
purity. Genuine specimens of gold soon adorned 
the cabinets of the curious, and the working jewel- 
lers of Adelaide were employed to mount South 
Australian gems in some of the virgin gold thus 
produced in the province. 

The excitement produced was extreme ; the £2 
shares went rapidly up to £30 each, and the for- 
tunate purchasers at the advanced price thought 



328 



AUSTRALASIA. 



their fortunes were made ; but all at once the 
prizes wore very much the appearance of blanks ; 
t]]e working of the nanes was discontinued, and 
the price of shares went down to each.* 

Copper w^as first discovered in 1844, and we 
find in the Government returns for 1 850, a 
list of 49 mines in the province at the close of that 
year. The greater portion have ceased working, 
solely from want of funds or labour at a cheap 
rate. The following mines are now in operation : — 

1. The Burra Burra. This great copper mine 
33 situated 90 miles north- by -east from Adelaide. 
It yields annually about 20,000 tons of copper ore, 
valued at £20 per ton. This mine and the Patent 
Copper Company's smelting works, in connection 
with it, employ about 2,000 men, at wages from 
<£l. to £2. per week. The following shows the 
proceeds, expenditure, and profits of this vast 
mine from 1845, to the end of 1851 : — 

Original paid-up Capital - - - £12,320 

Total proceeds from commencement to 29th 

September, 1845 - - - 949,86^ 

962,18a 

Labour and materials, and other £ 

expenses in the colony - - 544,159 
Profits divided - - - 2S3.360 
Paid for land - - - 30,774 
Buildings - - - 26,961 

Profits undivided - - - 76,932 

■ £962,185 

2. Kapunda copper mine, situated 50 miles 
N.N.E. from Adelaide, is worked by private pro- 
prietors. It produces a regular supply of very 
good ore. 

3. North Kapunda, close to the above, also a 
oopper mine ; several pitches have been let. 

*■ New deposits have since been discoyered, for partien- 
kr« of which see Appendix. 



SOUTH AUSTIJALIA. 



329 



4. Karkulto copper mines, 76 miles N. by W. 
Tl)e South Australian Mininor Association, and the 

I Hoyal Mining Company are working mines respec- 
tively at Karkulto and Karkulto Proper. 

5. Worthing copper mine, 14 miles S.S.W. from 
j Adelaide; worked by an English Company. 

6. Perseverance (late Adelaide Copper Mine), 
[ 12 miles from Adelaide, N.E. by E. Parties 

digging for gold on licenses. 
I 7. Tungkillo or Ready Creek copper mine, 

I worked by an English Company, 35 miles E N.E. 
j from Adelaide. 

' 8. Enterprise, now called the Consolidated mines, 

Barossa and Lyndoch valley, copper, 38 miles 

I E. by N. from Adelaide. 

9. Kanmantoo copper mine, E.S.E., 25 miles 
from Adelaide. This mine belongs to and is worked 
by the South Australian Company. 

' 10. The Bremer copper mine, near the last men- 

tioned. 

11. Wheal Mary, same locality, leased bj 
G. D. Sismey from the South Australian Company. 

12. Wheal Maria, same locality, let to the 
W^orthing Company. 

13. Wheal Friendship, same locality. 

The value of these nnnes to this colony is in- 
calculable, and has already been the means of 
doubling the ptipulation. 

The province abounds in other mineral riches, 
amongst which niay be included silver, lead, 
emery, ironstone of very higli. per centage, &c.,, 
only waiting an ample supply of labour to develops 
their extent and value. 

Like New Soutli Whales, South Australia is ex- 
tremely favoured, in being almost totally exempt 
from ferocious animals. The native dog may be 
said to be the only animal of that description : it is 



330 



AUSTKALASIA. 



of a blackish brown or red colour, about the size 
of an Eno;lisli fox, but stan ls higher, and is stronger 
made. This animal commits serious depredations 
among the sheep, unless the flocks are carefully 
watched. It is not very swift, is extremely 
cowardly, and easily taken with good dogs. 

Kano^aroos are of five different species, viz., the 
forester, the brush, the wallaby, the kangaroo- rat, 
and the kangaroo-mouse. 

The forester is the largest of the species, fre- 
quently weighing 150 lbs ; it derives its name from 
being generally found in forests. This animal is 
exceedingly swift, but is soon wearied out ; when 
hard pressed it turns upon its pursuers, standing 
erect, and fighting the dogs most fiercely. 

The wallaby seldom weighs more than 80 lbs., 
but is like the former in appearance ; it frequents 
swampy places, and feeds upon grasses and leaves. 
The flesh is much superior in flavour to the others. 

The brush kangaroo is found among rocks, and 
places difficult of access. It differs from the other 
species in having a long bushy tail. 

The kanaaroo-rat and kangaroo-mouse are two 
varieties of the same species ; the former is about 
the size of a rabbit ; the latter is considerably 
smaller ; they also have the ventral sac, or pouch, 
on the lower part of the stomach. They are night 
animals, sleepinof durinof the day. 

The flesh of all the kangaroo species is whole- 
some and nutritive : it has no fat except a small 
quan:ity round the root of the tail; this part of the 
animal is highly esteemed as it makes excellent 
soup, which is considered a delicacy. The skin of 
the kangaroo makes good leather. 

Two or three kinds of flying squirrel, and two 
different kinds of the oppossum, the common and 
the grey, inhabit the trees. They are perfectly 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



331 



harmless and inoffensive : their skins are of little 
value. 

The bandicoot is about the size of the common 
rat ; it burrows in the earth, and feeds upon roots : 
its flesh is highly esteemed by the natives. 

The feathered tribes of South Australia are as 
numerous as in the other colonies, and many of 
them remarkable for their singular character and 
beautiful plumage. 

The emu is the largest bird ; it resembles the 
ostrich very much, both in form and habits ; when 
standing erect it sometimes measures from five to 
six feet in height ; it has no wings, but runs with 
great swiftness ; it is covered with feathers of a 
very singular kind, having more the appearance of 
hair : there is a large quantity of fat immediately 
under the skin, which yields a fine oil, very useful 
in oiling shoes and other leather. 

The black swan is found upon the lakes and 
rivers, but is very shy. Wild ducks are very 
abundant, of two or three varieties, and are excel- 
lent eating. Pigeons of several species are found, 
as also snipes, plovers, and quails ; they are easily 
shot, and are fine eating. The finest bird of the 
game kind is the wild turkey ; it is about the size 
of an English goose, and of delicious flavour. 

The parrot and cockatoo tribes are very numer- 
ous, the greater part of them having very beautiful 
plumage. The diff*erent species of small birds are 
very dissimilar to those of Europe ; they are ex- 
ceedingly numeroits, but none of them deserve the 
character of singing birds. 

The inlets, bays, and waters of this colony abound 
with various kinds of fish. The best kind are 
snappers, rock cod, bream, mullet, lierring, whiting, 
mussels, rock and bed oysters, prawns, &c. 

Whales abound in the various bays of the 



ATSTRALASIA. 



colony ; aud the establishment of tii^ South Aih- 
trahaa CumpLiny has been very successful iii tliat 
fishery. 

The reptile tribe is not very Pumerous, thoui^h 
some of thena are very dangerous ; of these, tiie 
brown snake is most deadly. Scorpions, centipedes, 
and tarantulas, are also found, but their poison is 
fceldom fatal. 

The insects of this colony afford a wide and en- 
tertaining field for the naturalist; many of them 
being very beautiful as w^ell as extremely curious. 
Locusts abound in the summer season, but they do 
no injury. Flies are very numerous and trouble- 
some in summer, and great care is requisite to pro- 
tect njeat and other articles from their ravages. 
Musquitues, except in lovv situations near water, 
and where there are thick woods in the neighbour- 
hood, artj not very abundant, and rarely of any 
serious inconvenience. 

With the exception of the range of mountains 
already mentioned as common to the island, there 
are but comparatively few of any otfier description. 

The principal river of Si)Uth Australia is the 
Murray, whicli is nearly as broad for the last tvvo 
hundred miles of its course, as the Thames at 
London bridge. Its waters are sweet, and drink- 
able. 

On the eastern boundary of the colony is the 
river Glenelg, wdiich is frequently dry at the mouth, 
durino: the hot season. Tiie rivt r Rnfus is an in- 
sigDiiicant stream, not exceeding four miles m 
length. The two other streams at present known 
are the Torrens, and the Hindmarsh, the former of 
which supplies the settlers with fresh water. 

The soil of South Australia, a^ far as the country 
has been explored, is considered superior to that 
of Xcw South ^Yales and Yau Dieman's Land, iu- 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



333 



asmuch as there does iiot appear so much bad soil 
intermingled with the good. It is generally com- 
posed of a rich loam averaging a!)oat nine inches 
thick upon a substratum of coarse calcareous rock, 
and through the whole extent of the phnns round 
the settlement, gives evidence of having been at no 
very remote period covered by the yea. 

Over the hills the soil and vegetation are still 
fine, and Mr. James, in his ''Six Months in South 
Australia," tells us that he visited a tract of 
country between the mountains and the mouth of 
the Murray river that seemed to contain nearly 
100.000 acres of excellent rich soil, in many places 
ready for the plough. In short, the richness and 
fertility of the soil will, in course of time, enable 
the settlers to produce the vegetables and fruits 
found in the market-places of the south of Europe : 
even in its present infant state, its melons are equal 
to those of tlie Levant. 

The climate durirjg eiglit months of the year is-^s 
fine and salubrious as could pos^^ihiy be wished for; 
but from the latter end of November, all December, 
January, February, and part of ^;iarch, the heat is 
oppressive, almost intolerable. ^Ir. James says, 

I have seen the thern ometer in a dark room, 
nearly closed up, and with a thick roof of thatch 
over it, as high as 90 degrees, not once, but a dozen 
different days ; and if the in.^trusnent is hung upon 
a w^all in the direct beams of the sun, it rises to 
140 degrees. 

By a register kept very correctly at the govern- 
ment-house during' the whole of the year 1837, it 
rained 115 days, and was fine and clear 250 ; and 
this may be taken as a fair average for a series of 
years. '' It is this peculiar character ()f the climate 
which ought to recommend to the cautious settler 
sheep husbandry over every other sort of rural in- 



AUSTRALASIA. 



cliistry ; the profits of which, if steadily petsevered 
in, will remunerate him in a few years for all the 
inconveniences of a hush life." 

The dryness of the climate has a most favourable 
influence on the general health of the colonists. 
They may be said to live almost in the open air, 
and appear free from every disease. 

As soon as the necessary arrangements were 
made for erecting South Australia into a British 
colony, a surveying expedition set sail, under the 
command of Colonel Light, Surveyor- General, for 
the^ purpose of locating the principal settlement. 
He arrived at Kangaroo Island, August 19, 
1836 ; and after having visited the coast in its 
vicinity, he at length fixed the site of the future 
settlement ; and on an eminence about six miles 
inland from the harbour the capital was laid down, 
w^hich, with its adjacent port, were, by desire of 
his late Majesty (William IV.), named Adelaide, 
in honour of his queen. 

On the 20th December, 1836, Captain Hind- 
marsh, H.N., the first governor of the colony, 
arrived ; and on the 10th of March, 1837, the sur- 
vey of the town of Adelaide was completed, and 
forthwith the allotment and sale of the land was 
commenced. On the 23rd of May, the streets, 
squares, &c. of Adelaide were named ; and on the 
25th, Port Adelaide was declared a legal port. 

Up to May, 185 7, no fewer than sixteen vessels 
had arrived in the colony from England, conveying 
upwards of 1000 souls, with large supplies of pro- 
visions, stores, &c. Twenty- five vessels had also 
arrived from Sydney and Yan Dieman's Land, 
laden with provisions and various kinds of mer- 
chandise, and bringing also many intending settlers 
from these colonies. 

The proceedings of government were the means 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



of calling into existence a joint stock company, 
called The South Australian Company." The 
following is an abstract of the chief regulations of 
this company, viz. : — 

The capital is £500,000, divided into 20,000 
shares of £25 each. 

The affairs of the company are governed by a 
board of directors, each holding not less than 100 
shares. 

The capital may be increased to £1,000,000. 
Shareholders may have the liberty (with the per- 
mission of the directors) to pay up all or part of 
their subscribed capital, for which interest at 4^er 
cent, per annum is allowed, and such advance may 
be recalled on giving due notice to the board. 

No calls to exceed 50s. per share, of which 
twenty-one days' notice will be given. 

The company was formed, January, 1836, with 
a subscribed capital of £200,000, and during the 
same year this was increased to £300,000 by an 
issue of 4000 shares at a premium of £l ; during 
1837 it was further increased by a second issue at 
30s. premium. 

The first object was to purchase a quantity of 
land from the colonization commissioners for South 
Australia, best suited to their purposes, and on 
terms likely to yield a profitable return. They 
judged it wisest, if they erred at all on this point, 
to do so on the safe side, to purchase only as much 
country land as would be necessary for their plans, 
and as much town lands as they could obtain ; on 
these principles 102 acres of town land, and 13,770 
acres of country land, conveying a right of pasturage 
to 220,160 acres, were purchased at the preliminary 
sales. They also secured 320 acres on Kangaroo 
Island, in right of which they could also lease 5120 
acres of pasturage- 



836 



AUSTRALASIA. 



The grovvtli of wool was one of the objects con- 
templated by the company, and for this purpose 
they obtained, by virtue of their purchase of lands, 
^lie right of pasturage of a vast extent of territory, 
at a rate of less than one farthing per acre, on 
which they enjoy the important privilege of chang- 
ing their sheep walks every three years, if neces- 
sa*^y, an advantage deemed essential, in wool grow- 
ing countries, to the welfare of the flocks and the 
quality of the wool. 

For the foundation of their flocks the company 
ba^to look to the adjacent colonies of New South 
^Vales and Van Dienian's Land, where sheep could 
l>e obtained at moderate prices, and from whence 
the expense of transport is much less than from 
Europe. They therefore imported into South 
Australia nearly 3000 fine woolled ewes, and to 
maintain a pure breed, and secure a high character 
for their produce, the directors procured from Ham- 
burg three parcels of superior Saxon rams and ewes 
of the choicest stocks of Germany. The increase 
of ail tliese sheep rapidly extended the company's 
flocks, and thereby provided a source of supply for 
the colony at large. They also imported horses, 
bullocks, &c. 

Another branch of the company's pursuits is the 
whale, sea\ and other fisheries, in accomplishment 
of which they purchased and equipped several ves- 
sels for the sperm and black whale tisheries. These 
vessels return after each cruise to refit and ex- 
change their casks at the company's naval station 
at Encounter Bay. 

The crews of each ship are engaged for three 
years, and their families are expected to reside in 
Kingscote. the company's establishment on Kan- 
garoo Island, \Ahere the seamen's wages will be 
paid from time tv time. By this pLin the officers 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



837 



and sailors will have frequent opportunities of en- 
joying the society of their families, whereby they 
may be induced to adopt tliat station as their 
future liome, instead of returning to England upon 
the expiry of their engagements, thus establishing 
a nursery for seamen in South Australia that can- 
not fail to produce important advantages to a colony 
in such a central position, having easy access by 
sea to every point of its own extensive territory, 
and all the other established colonies in New Hol- 
land. 

In addition to their whale fishing by ships, ^he 
company have established a station on shore, for 
taking the black whale in the winter season. 

As the w^aters of the colony abound in fish of 
various kinds, proper nets and fishing gear have 
been sent out, and the cooper's establishment w^ill 
provide casks for packing the salted and cured 
fish ; they can have a plentiful supply of salt from 
the lagoons close to Nepean Bay. 

The directors allow each family in their service 
the use of a half acre of land, and aid in its en- 
closure and the erection of a cottage, and also 
assist in obtaining a cow and pig. Instead of ra- 
tions they pay in sterling money, or its represen- 
tative value. 

The city of Adelaide lies in 34 deg. 5? sec. south 
latitude, and 138 deg. 88 sec. east longitude. It 
is divided into two equal parts by the river Torreua 
(called Yatala by the natives), a pretty stream 
rising in the mountains, and expending itself in the 
swamp, into which a branch of the harbour has 
been found to emerge. The situation of the city 
is very beautiful, either approached from the har- 
bour or Holdfast-bay ; the road froan both of the^e 
places is over an extensive plain, lightly timbered. 
The view presented at each change of the road ia 
Q 



838 



AUSTRALASIA. 



very pleasing and varied ; some parts are tbrougli 
open plains of meadow, from three to four thousand 
acres in extent, bounded by belts of trees ; on 
passing which, you enter another and somewhat 
similar plain, intersected in one part by the river, 
its course being indicated by a belt of magnificent 
gum trees growing along its banks ; and in spring, 
the white flowers of the marshmallow, which 
border it, indicate to those who are acquainted 
with Australian botany, the neighbourhood of 
water. Approaching from Holdfast- Bay, on the 
rij^it of the plain alluded to, is a slight eminence, 
w-ell wooded with trees of a different character 
from those in the low grounds. On this gentle 
eminence the southern and larger part of the city 
is erected. This hill, about sixty feet above the 
level of the plain, forms a table land. The town 
is, therefore, a dead level, but the views presented 
by the four exterior frontages, or terraces, of the 
southern town are very dissimilar from each other, 
though all are delightful in their kind. 

The North Terrace overlooks the valley of the 
river, separating the two parts of the town, and 
the Park, which being studded with very fine trees 
and occasional glimpses of w^ater, add much to the 
bea^ity of this situation. The Western Terrace 
overlooks the extensive plains between the coast 
and the town, and commands a view of the gulf, 
together w^ith the vessels at anchor in the road- 
stead ; it ali^o overlooks the roads both from the 
harbour and Holdfast-Bay, and is to those who are 
fond of bustle the most agreeable situation ; its 
direct exposure to the sea-breeze also renders it a 
most desirable summer residence. The South 
Terrace is perhaps the least pleasing in point of 
beauty, the view" being more confined than tlie 
others ; as tlie hills here approach the nearest 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



830 



to tlie city. The East Terrace appears to he the 
favourite spot for villa residences ; commanding an 
extensive view of ricli plains, backed by the range 
of mountains, of which Mount Lofty is the most 
prominent feature ; and it is difficult to imagine 
anything more varied and beautiful than the aspect 
of these hills, as they are illumined by the sun, or 
enveloped in clouds. Tiiese terraces are all situated 
on the brow of the hill, which slopes gradually 
into the plain. 

The town to the northward of the river 
(Torrens), is situated on much higher ground, 
and rises more abruptly from the river ; and 
although not likely to be so valuable as a place of 
business as the southern town, the South and East 
Terraces, from the peculiar beauty and extent 
of their prospects, are very valuable situations. 
Some of the sections, in the low grounds on the 
east, near the river, are extremely valuable for 
gardens, from the richness of the soil and the vici- 
nity of water. The hill on which North Adelaide 
is situated, is the termination of a lateral branch of 
the Mount Lofty rage. 

Adelaide stands upon a limestone foundation, to 
the southward of the river, with a shale of about 
eighteen inches or two feet thick, under which is a 
marl for about ten feet. On passing through this, 
a very stiff clay is found, for a considerable depth, 
somewhat like pipe- clay. Wells have been sunk 
through these strata, and water obtained in sand at 
from thirty to fifty feet. These wells require no 
steening, as the marl and clay stand perfectly well. 
On the north side of the river the limestone appears 
more compact. 

The South Australian Company, in their pam- 
phlet, entitled the Great Soutii Land," gives a 
most flattering description of the City of Adelaide, 



340 



AlSTRALA.^IA. 



Avhich is flatly contradicted by other disinterested 
v/riters. The following picture is certainly in- 
tended to induce emigration. 

The city, although it has been so called cer= 
tainly by anticipation, already begins to wear a 
townly aspect, and to exhibit the symptoms of a 
thriving community. The bouses are increasing, 
chiefly of the cottage order, and composed of very 
miscellaneous materials— such as stone, pise, cob, 
or wood, with slated, thatched, or shingled roofs : 
but there are also buildings of a more ornate 
description; anji government is erecting a square, 
and suitable accommodations for the public depart- 
ments. Business in general is active, and gradually 
systematising as in the towns at home, and there 
are already a throng of butchers, bakers, tailors, 
shoemakers, ladies' dress-makers, and various other 
trades. There are also stores for more general 
supplies, and som.e of the first houses in London 
have established branches for mercantile and agency 
business. The constant arrivals, too, make the set- 
tlement a scene of continual activity." 

Any person looking at the position of Adelaide 
on the map. and acquainted with the character of 
tlie climate in this parallel, can have no doubt of its 
salubrity. Its proximity to the sea, distant only 
six miles, and to the high range of hills, of which 
Mount Lofty forms the apex, at a similar distance, 
imparts a coolness during the summer months, not 
to be obtained in a less favourable situation. A 
more appropriate site, however, for the capital of 
the colony than Adelaide presents, might have berti 
chosen ; but it was impossible to have selected one 
more beautiful. Adelaide will always be a town of 
considerable importance in South Australia, but 
from the shallowness of the harbour, and the 
swampy nature of the shore, the landing at the 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 341 

port must always be difficult, and must render it 
impossible for the magnificent projection of tlie 
surveyor-general ever to be carried into execution. 
Port Lincoln is eminently fitted to be the metro- 
polis, and pity it is this was not at once fixed upon. 
There, sheltered by Boston Island, or in Spalding 
Cove, any vessel that arrives may be stepped into 
by a plank from the shore, and all the bullocks 
required for dragging goods from Adelaide swamp 
to Adelaide township might have been dispensed 
with. Such a consummation appears rapidly ap- 
proaching, and then the prosperity of the colony 
will be placed on its firmest basis. 

Between North Adelaide and the harbour is a 
fine meadow plain, extending over a surface of six 
or eight thousand acres of fine alluvial sand, with 
a substratum of excellent clay, over which the road 
passes, on a dead level, beyond the irrigation of the 
Torrens, w^hich winds its way over a slightly de- 
clivitous bed to the head of the estuary which 
forms the harbour. Vessels of about 200 tons 
burthen lie within a quarter of a mile of the com- 
missioners' warehouses, on a bottom of soft mud 
at low water. Great inconvenience has hitherto 
been experienced in landing cargo, in consequence 
of a mangrove swamp, of about 250 yards in 
extent, intervening between high-water mark and 
the eminence where the warehouses are placed. 
This is now partly remedied, by cutting a navi- 
gable canal through the swamp, capable of re- 
ceiving boats drawing four feet of water, and 
terminating within a hundred yards of the ware- 
houses, which are extremely capacious, and built 
of iron-plates, resembling in form and construction 
an engine-boiler of the larger class. Vessels of a 
greater burthen remain about a mile and a half 
below, in four fathoms at low water. To this 



o42 AUSTRALASIA. 

point the prospective views of the surveyor- general 
have been directed, in reserving a line of ground 
from the anchorage, over the plain, to the western 
point of North Adehiide, for the formation of a 
railroad or ship canal to this town, an enterprise 
which, at no distant day, will be carried into effect. 
A single pair of sea gates will be ail that is neces- 
sary to secure floatage for vessels of 350 tons, and 
a partial diversion of the Torrens will afford an 
inexhaustible means of cleansing the canal from 
any accumulation of deposit at the gates. 

An association has been formed at Adelaide, in 
connection with the Society for the Propagation of 
the Gospel, to assist the colonists in providing for 
themselves the means of public worship and reli- 
gious instruction, according to the doctrines of the 
Church of England. • 

Among the numerous individuals v^dio, with 
their families, have emigrated to South Australia, 
are many members of dissenting congregations. 
They likewise formed a society, aided by some of 
the most highly respected mini>ters, for the support 
of their different forms of worship. 

The following general view of affiirs in South 
Australia, by G. F. Angus, Esq., M. L. C, for 
many years chairman of the South Australian 
Company, will be read with interest : — 

Lindsay House, near Angaston, South Australia, June, 1852. 

After more than sixteen months' residence in this colony, 
I may presume, with some confidence, to give my judgment 
of its state and condition. I have taken every opportunity 
of personally inspecting the settled districts of the country, 
extending from near the bend of the River Murray, in the 
north, to Rapid Bay, in the south ; from Gulf St. Vincent 
to the borders of the river, from 150 to 200 miles ; and, 
by diligent inquiiy of those who have resided in the more 
distant and less peopled pai'ts, I have acquh^ed, I trust, a 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



correct knowledge of the colouy. I have been struck with 
the fact, and have no little satisfaction in makiog the 
statement to you, that my own observations have proved 
the uniform correctness of the mformation which I en- 
deavoured to diffuse in England of the resources and 
character of South Australia. 

I have found the climate to agree well with me ; and, 
although in my sixty-third year, I have enjoyed better 
health and more vigour than at any time in Engla^nd. The 
winters are so mild, that I had not a fire in my library at 
Lindsay House during the last year ; but there is in this, 
as in most other countries, a great variety of climate. On 
high ground and in deep valleys it is cold in winter ; but 
where the country is gently undulating, as in this part of 
the Barossa Eange, it is not so hot in summer nor so cold 
in winter as it is upon the Gawler and other plains, and 
also in Adelaide ; nor are we troubled with dust as they 
are. The country around my house, in all directions, is 
the most beautiful imagmabie — I have not seen anything 
like it in England — and unquestionably healthy. Many 
thousands of acres are under cultivation, while the re- 
mainder affords fine rich pasture, much resembling an 
English park. There are some wood and rocky ranges in 
different parts of it, which supply timber, but form a 
small proportion of country district. 

Tiiere are many rich and extensive gardens and vine- 
yards, bearing most kinds of fruits and vegetables ; sheep 
and cattle stations, dairies of sixty to ninety cows, pigs, 
horses, and poultry, besides wild game, which afford to 
the inhabitants provisions abundant and cheap ; and, 
throughout, there is a good supply of water for all neces- 
sary purposes. Many other parts of this colony are also 
highly favoured in their resources, but they cannot be 
described within the compass of a letter. There are rich and 
fertile grain-lands all along the plains from Gawler Town 
to Adelaide, about twenty-six miles ; in the valleys of 
Mount Lofty and Mount Barker, from the city of Adelaide 
to AYillunga, about thirty miles around Willunga, and 
many other places. The River Murray is a majestic and 
beautiful river, extending back into New South Wales and 
Yictoria, now navigable for boats, but dangerous from 
sunken timber. Some day, although at a great expense, it 
will be made navigable for steam-boats, but it will not be 
in my day, and 1 consider the money taken out of our 
land-fund by the Governor last year, in an attempt to 
commence this work, will be a total loss to the colony. It 



344 



AUSTRALASIA. 



requires wisdom to time a great work, as well as it does to 
lay the plan for its accomplishment. Were the work 
completed to-day, there can be no traffic upon the line for 
years to come, nor can it be superinduced for want of 
population, while on both sides of the nver the land is 
utterly useless for many hundred miles from its mouth, 
without an expenditure which only an old populous country 
could afford for such a purpose About thirty inches of 
rain fell last year, and it is abundant now that it has fallen 
more or less daily for this past month. The rain usually 
begins just after the harvest is got in, and prepares the 
earth for ploughiug. This year the harvest has been a 
very good one, and well got in. The price of wheat has 
risen from 4s. to 5s. 6d. We have experienced no trouble 
from the natives^ who make themselves useful in various 
ways, but they do not like to be long in a place. Their 
habits are not easily changed. We have several villages 
within a few miles of us. At Angaston, two miles from 
my house, there is a local court — where three, sometimes 
four, magistrates attend — a physician, chapel, stores, and 
the trades usually carried on in small country towns. A 
never-failing brook runs through the middle of the place, 
and there are several neat stone houses, two good hote"'s 
for the accommodation of travellers, &c. This place is 
fifty miles from Adelaide. In summer the roads are good, 
but in winter it is not so very easy to travel over them. 
Great improvements in the main roads of the colony have 
been made of late years, but, at present, all public works 
a.re at a standstill for want of hands to work at them. 
The copper mines have shared the same fate for the past 
half year, the people having gone to the gold-mines in 
Victoria, chiefly to Mount Alexander. About four hundred 
miners have returned, and gone to work at the Burra Mine 
again. Multitudes are now coming back from the gold 
diggings, both by sea from Melbourne, and overland 400 
miles from Mount Alexander. Some have been very suc- 
cessful, but a far greater number have got blanks. Many 
people dislike the city and port of Adelaide to reside at, 
and speak evil of both. While attending the sittings at 
the legislative council, I resided in lodgings in the city of 
Adelaide from August 20th to the following Christmas, 
1851, and had some expet-i^nce of it. Both the city and 
port are far superior to what I expected to find them, the 
former, with its macadamized streets, and tolerable pave- 
ments, the number of good stone or brick houses, the ex- 
tent and superiority of its shops and warehouses, as well 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



345 



as many fine places of worship and public buildings. Its 
situation is beautiful for its prospect of the hills, and its 
site is the best that could be fixed upon in the colony, as 
far as 1 have yet seen. There is now a good macadamized 
road from the city to the port, on which the traffic is im- 
mense, but the two-wheeled narrow-tired drays, which 
carry from two to three tons each, are enough to cut up 
the best roads in the world, imless as the streets of London 
are, or the Roman causeways. 

The extent of accommodation for shipping, the great 
number of well built stone warehouses, the extent of 
quay-room, the mud-barges for deepening the river, and 
the steam-tugs for taking the vessels down the creek to 
the sea, greatly astonished me, as well as the excellent inns 
which are numerous there. There are all sorts of shops 
and stores for the supplies of provisions and shipping are 
to be found there ; also places of worship, and a patent 
slip for hauling up vessels to be repaired. The port is 
sadly plagued with musquitoes in summer. It is situated 
in a place surrounded with salt water swamps, sometimes 
overflowed ; yet it is said to be tolerably healthy. The 
sea-water is being banked out, and the low parts raised 
with gravel and sand. Every year will see it improved. 
Although my own health was not so good when residing in 
the city of Adelaide, it cannot be considered an unhealthy 
place, except from the want of drainage, and the uncleanly 
habits of the lower classes, who are huddled together in 
the narrow streets without ventilation, and who exhibit a 
total disregard of all sanitary regulations. In summer, oc- 
casionally, the dust is very annoying, and in winter the 
mud. Both these evils are likely to be remedied when 
the streets are all paved, proper sewerage made, and the 
projected water-works are completed. The expense of fuel, 
the high rents of houses, and the brackishness of the 
water of the wells, (although the river Torrens furnishes 
the sweetest water, and that in abundance,) are complained 
of as great inconveniences. Provisions are cheap and plen- 
tiful, and many excellent hotels are open for the entertain- 
ment of strangers. On most of the public roads of the 
colony there are inns and public-houses ! Now, when I con- 
sider the infancy of the colony — about fifteen years 
old — I am greatly astonished at the progress it has made, 
and the extensive development of its resources. 

The year 1851 was undoubtedly the most prosperous 
year of its history, and I was happy to have witnessed it 
myself. It was the result of substantial progress gene- 
« 2 



346 



AUSTRALASIA. 



rally, althougli in some things I could perceive inflation 
and over-speculation. The population is about 70,000, 
the productions extraordinary, and the revenue large. 
With all this there was a restless spirit of progress at any 
rate, and a " go-a-head" spirit. There was also a mani- 
fest overplus of population in proportion to its available 
ORpital. The emigration of thousands of Germans, of 
whom we have about 7,000, without capital at first, but 
who make sure way by their industry, displaced those 
English and Irish who ought never to have come here, and 
who either would not or could not work, while the em- 
ployers of labour did not possess extra capital to induce 
them to grapple from necessity with this useless class, who 
at last were spread over the colony as trampers, living in 
idleness, and receiviug the customary hospiiaiity of the 
farmers and country settlers — a mere incubus upon so- 
ciety. Many of the idle classes would not leave Adelaide, 
and there became the hotbed of sedition and discontent. 
The newspapers injudiciously mistook and compassionated 
their condition ; petitions w^ere presented to government 
and the legislative council, who soon made advances to 
employ all who would work on public roads at Si*. 6d. to 
-is. per day or equal to it. Then it v/as found out that few 
came forward to embrace the offer ; their scheme to raise 
the average price of labour bej^ood all reason, broke 
down, and no more was heard of it, except that it was 
found out that liberated convicts from the neighbouring 
colonies were the chief agitators ! Even at that time I 
know that every person who was faithful and useful 
might have got employment in the country districts if he 
had gone there to seek it. Many of the trampers were 
offered high wages in the country, but refused to work at 
all, as was proved at our stations. No doubt reports of 
destitution in this colony would reach England, but only 
tlie idle, vicious, and iucapable, were the subjects of it. 
Some of the sons and daughters of the middle classes in 
England have come here aud failed to succeed. I have 
tried many of them, and, with every wish to do them ser- 
vice, I was obliged to give it up in despair. Such useless, 
delicate individuals, pr;ictically ignorant of everything 
useful in the common affairs of colonial business, and do- 
mestic life, ought never to have left their mother country. 

Such was the state of things in this colony at Christmas 
last, when the gold-fields were laid open in Victoria, and 
the gold-fever raged throughout Australasia. A few 
months previously the gold fields were discovered in New 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



South Wales at Opliir, and a few of oar colonists went 
there at the time, but the effect of the emigration of our 
male adults was not sensibly felt by u.s in that movement. 
The reports from Victoria indac^^d the immedia.te depar- 
ture of most of the idle, vicious, and useless portions of the 
people of Melbourne by sea; then the miners followed: 
and, by degrees, as favourable reports arrived, numbers of 
our useful and industrious people emig?-ated, until, pro- 
bably, one-seventh of our colouists, many of whom were 
tolerably w^eil-off shop-keepers, clerks, &c., &c., who took 
out of our banks several thousand gold sovereigns, to pro- 
vide passage-money, and provisions at Victoria. A great 
number went overland direct to Mount Alexander, and 
took provisions and supplies enough with them to last 
them until their return back to their families. After all, 
a sufficient number of men have been left to us to get in 
the harvest in good condition, and to attend to the flocks 
and herds, as well as to agriculture, but on so compressed 
a scale, however, as to create no little inconvenience. 
There is, therefore, a fine field for useful people from Eng- 
giand, who, in any numbers, are sure to do well in South 
Australia. There has been, during the past month or two, 
a very favourable re-action ; a great number have re- 
turned from the diggings ; every vessel from Melbourne is 
full of them ; and many have come overla^nd. There have 
been above £300,000 to £400,000 value of gold brought 
already to this colony as the fruits of the South Austra- 
lian gold digjrers' efibrts, and, should the emigration from 
Europe be what it is probable to be, I am of opinion that 
we shall be greatly benefited by the Victoria gold dis- 
covery, while we shall avoid the horribly demoralizing in- 
fluences of the gold-field localities, which are so fearful 
that no newspaper dare correctly describe them. I have 
no space left to report the working of the new legislative 
council, or to comment on the moral and religious condi- 
tion of this colony, nor yet to show how well the colony- 
is rising above the effects produced by the gold disco- 
veries. I was in Adelaide a few weeks ago, and at the port 
all things were going on as formerly, the shops and ware- 
houses serving customers as heretofore, and much activity 
indicated ; therefore you must not believe the reports of 
the Melbourne papers, which represent this colony aa 
utterly deserted and ruined. Our colonists so greatly 
prefer their homes here to Victoria^ that all of them ar^ 
moving back to us again. 



548 



AUSTRA.LASIA. 



LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. 

Address of his Excellency Sir H. E. F. Young, 
Knight, to the L»egislative Council of South Aus- 
tralia, CD the 1st. of September 1852. 

•'Mr. Speaker and Gentlemen of the Legislative Conncil — 
'* In meeting you at the present ordinary Session for the 
despatch of public business, it is unnecessary, because of 
its notoriety, to enter minutely into a statement of the 
derangement of our social and financial condition, which 
originated, chiefly, in the discovery of valuable gold-fields 
in the neighbouring provi'jce of Victoria. 

2. For present purposes, it is sufficient to say, that 
the revenue of 1851 — instead of attaining the usual rate of 
twenty per cent, increase over tliat of the previous year — 
fell short of the revenue of 1850. During the first six 
months of 1852, as compared with the corresponding 
period of 1851, the customs revenue was diminished by 
£16,559. The population of the colony, at the present 
time, is 66,106 ; or somewhat less than the number of the 
inhabitants on the 1st. of January, 1851. 

" The gold-fields of the adjacent province of Yictoria 
still continue amazingly productive ; and a recent dis- 
covery of gold has been made witliin twenty -three miles of 
Adelaide. There is reason therefore, to expect a continual 
withdrawal of labour from its ordinary channels ; and, 
consequently, the prospect of raising our staples of grain, 
43opper, and wool to their usual extent, is essentially pre- 
carious. The probable revenue of 1852 is estimated at 
£101,000, and the expenditure at about the same. The 
general revenue of 1853, calculated on the tariff of 1851 
(which awaits the confirmation of her Majesty), is reckoned 
at £96,000, but this amount would be greatly lessened in 
the event of an exact assimilation of all the Australian 
tariffs being attained. A rigid economy is, therefore, indis- 
pensably necessary to preserve the efficiency of the public 
service within the limits of the present revenue ; and the 
estimate of expenditure m 1853 — which will now be laid 
before you, amounting to about £95,000. is based strictly 
on that Drinciple, although it is necessarily calculated to 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



meet the larger cost to the public entailed on it, chiefly in 
the departments of the police and post-office, by a rise in 
wages, in provisions, and in the charge for the main- 
tenance of inland postal communication. I have also 
added to this estimate, provision for the establishment of 
Morse's Patent, or some other inexpensive system of 
Electric Telegraph between the city and port of Adelaide. 

" The establishment of the police gold escort and the 
Assay-office have hitherto been maintained by the charge 
on gold, without burthening the general colonial revenue ; 
suid are, therefore, not included m the ordinary general 
estimates. 

**It is obvious, from the preceding account of t]>e 
revenue, that the surplus over expenditure is wholly in - 
adequate to carry into effect urgent public improvements 
of unavoidable magnitude. The policy of capitalising 
whatever may be ascertained from time to time to be the 
surplus balance of revenue over expenditure, which I have 
so frequently suggested to the consideration of the legisla- 
ture, is peculiarly appropriate to the present extraordinary 
times. In this way only is it feasible to execute repro- 
ductive works which have already received, or are open to 
receive, your sanction. I propose, therefore, to lay before 
you bills for raising loans for the following specific pur- 
poses — it being intended to enter on them as soon as the 
state of the labour market shall permit of contracts being 
obtained in the colony, or in the mother country, on 
reasonable terms : — £60,000 for a locomotive railwav from 
the city to Port Adelaide ; £100,000 for water works for 
Adelaide; £50,000 for bridges over the principal water- 
courses of the colony ; £40,000 for a tramway for animal 
power between Port Adelaide and Gawler town. The 
charge on the public revenue for the interest and sinking 
fund of these loans, for a term of years, could not exceed 
£25,000 per annum ; and as we may trust that our colonial 
revenue is already in a state of recovery, and as these 
works when completed, will, from their reproductive cha- 
racter, contribute to increase its amount, the council will 
probably be of opinion that such a yearly charge will 
prove no burthen on our financial resources. 

3. A return of the crown receipts and expenditure on 
account of the workings of such gold-fields as now are or 
may hereafter be discovered, will be kept separately from 
the general revenue and expenditure, but will be laid 
before you as soon as possible. 

"4. It affords me much satisfaction to inform you that 



3.30 



ATTSTRALA^.TA. 



the colonml bonded debt of £8.5,800,, v.lticli T was directed 
by the lords commissioners of her ]!\Iajesty's treasury, in 
1818, to liquidate in annual iustalments, has now been 
finall}^ extinguished from the crown moiety of the land 
fiir.d ; and this last mentioned fund has moieover contri- 
buted aids to the emigratioD fund, from 1848 to the pre- 
.sent time, of £89,558. The firuds in England applicable 
to immigration, at the end of 1851, were £50,000 ; and 
further remittances of £20,000 have since been effected. 

5. In order to facilitate comm^uuication between Ade- 
laide and the gold-fields of the province of Victoria, an 
overland route to Mount Alexander has been established. 
iiDder the protection of a police escoit; wells have been 
opened ; the line of count? y has been surveyed ; a town- 
ship marked off for sale ; and a police-station formed. 
The premium offered in 1850 for the inti-oduction of iron 
steam-boats of light draught of wate7% to navigate the 
river Mun ay, has not yet been claimed ; but there is 
reason to expect that a compauy fj om England will soon 
enter on this project. Meauwhile, I have not hesitated to 
appi'ove of a contract for the plying of a small steamer on 
the river in November next ; and I rely with confidence 
on your making provision for this important service. I 
have also moved the lords of the treastiry to send from 
Englaud an iron steam-boat of the kind mentioned in the 
conditions of the colonial premium, to be paid for out of 
the crown moiety of the land fund, in the event of its 
appearing certain that no private company shall then have 
undertaken the steam navigation of the river Murray. In 
connection Vvith this subject, I avail myself of the present 
occasion of stating to the council that the works and im- 
provements at Port Elliot and the elbow of the Murray, at 
the Goolwa, which have been considered necessary for 
opening up new settlements to intendiug emigrants and 
for facilitating the transit of the commerce of the ■»^iver to 
its sea mouth, are progressing satisfactorily. Their cost> 
iocluding the tramway betw^een Port Elliot and the Goolwa, 
according to the latest report and estimate of the super- 
visor of public works, which I have directed to be placed 
before you, wdll be within the original estimate and amount 
authorised by her Majesty's government to be appropriated 
to these purposes, viz., £21.000. Since the commence- 
ment of these improvements, the sales of crown lands in 
that locality have progi'essively increased in number and 
value. Port Elliot town lots sell readily at tlie minimum 
price of £80 an acre. Whatever difference of opinion may 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



formerly have existed between the executive and the legis- 
lature in reference to these works, I trust that the in- 
creased and urgent importance given to the navigation of 
the Murray to its sea mouth, by the discovery of the 
gold-fields of Victoria, which approach its borders, and 
the general recogaition of the immense results eveutuaily 
to arise to this colony from penetrating the interior of tli i 
Australian continent by this great river, will cause thoso 
differences to merge into a cordial unanimity and co-opera- 
tion, in efiecting whatever may be necessary to ensure to 
the object a speedy and successful issue. 

" The convenience of the situation of Port Wakefield, 
in Gulf St. Vincent, as a shipping place for the adjaceui: 
northern districts, and especially for the export of the 
London Patent Copper Smelting Company, induced me to 
incur some outlay from the crown moiety of the Luid fund, 
in order to deepen the channel of tfie creek from the an- 
chorage ground for shipping, at the head of the gulf : this 
expenditiire has not exceeded £1,500. The tonnage i?;- 
wards and outwards at Port Wakefield, in 1851, was in 
excess of 20,000 tons. The Port Wakefield town loz^ 
averaged at sales by public auction £30 per acre ; and th(3 
water frontages were leased in like manner, at an average; 
of £17 per acre for a term of years. In pursuance of the 
policy of increasing the number of outlets for produce to 
shipping places on the sea, I have, in addition to the in- 
tended works at the mouth of the Oukaparinga river, an<i 
the projected road to the north arm of the Port Adelaide 
Creek, authorised the construction, out of the crowa 
moiety of the land fund, of some improvements at Port 
Augusta, in Spencer's Gulf, and at Willunga Cove, in Gulf 
St. V^incent. Port A.ugusta will be a great convenience lo 
the recently-formed cattle and sheep stations north of 
Mount Remarkable, and will facilitate the further exteji- 
sion of settlements in that direction. V^illunga Cove will 
eave a long and heavy land-carriage to the farmei's of that 
neighbourhood and of the adjacent agricultural districts. 

"6. It is very gratifying to me to present to you my 
congratulations on the succe.^s of your last most importanii 
measure of legislation. The Bullion ^ctof the present 
year, by v/hich the requisite increase of the currency <ji 
bank notes was regulated on the basis of present conver- 
tibility into assayed and sttimped bullion, and of eventual 
convertibility, at no distant date, into coin of the realm, 
has up to the present time, in its practical results, ahnost 
compensated for the absence of a mint ; has (surpassed ti\e 
expectations of the most sanguine • and has complete ij 



35-2 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Tiudicated the prudence and sagacity of the legislature of 
South Australia, The local government has also obtained 
a memorable justification for having yielded, after pro- 
tracted and deliberate consultation, to the urgent unani- 
mity on this subject, of all the intelligence of the com- 
munity. The certain prospect of the crep.tion of a royal 
mint has emboldened the banks to continue to exchange 
bank notes for ingots at £3 per ounce, notwithstand- 
ing the unexpected amount of their receipts of bullion ; 
and the temporary Bullion Act, if not more speedily ended 
by a rise in the price of gold, may be satisfactorily carried 
on until by efflux of the time limited by the Act Xo. 1 of 
18 §2, it will expu-e on the 28th January next. The inter- 
colonial exchanges have continued at their customary rates 
during the existence of the Bullion Act ; and neither the 
currency, the property, nor the merchandise of the colony 
has sustained depreciation. 

The opening up of the overland route, and the esta- 
blishment of the Assay-office, have attracted to the colony 
upwards of a million of gold, the produce of the enter- 
prise Mid industry of South Australians at Mount Alex- 
ander. Thus, having fully and fairly participated in the 
gold harvest of the adjacent province, the community is 
placed in a condition to use the local Assay-office so as to 
secure for the future the full benefits of whatever gold 
may be either raised in South Australia, or conveyed to it 
by South Australians. 

" 7. In ad.dition to the loan bills, to which allusion has 
already been made, it will be my duty to invite your con- 
sideration of several legislative measures of importance. 
It has been a great satisfaction to me to have recently 
called into existence, at the instance of the citizens, the 
act which provides an elective and municipal form of 
government for the city of A delaide ; and I would now 
suggest your resumption of the bill to create self-govern- 
ment in the rural districts by elective local cormcils. T 
also recommended a bill to amend the act relating to the 
registration of deeds ; and, lastly, there will be submitted 
for your consideration a bill for the prevention of the 
spread of the disease of scab in sheep. The increased size 
of the flocks — the reduced number of shepherds — are 
hazardous expedients to which the pastoral interests may 
be compelled to resort; and when we regard the certainty 
that the spread of disease will thereby be promoted, the 
threatened danger to our export of wool, and to the 
■supply of provisions to an increasing population, renders 



SOUTH AUSTRALFA. 



353 



it obvious that very stringent and summary measures of 
precaution and remedy are imperatively required. 

" 8. In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, and gentlemen of the 
legislative council, I desire to renew to you an assurance 
of the sincerity of which you have now had four years' 
experience, that you may rely on my cordial and zealous 
co-operation, in whatever measures shall best conduce, 
under God's blessing, to the advancement and permanent 
welfare of the colony. 

•^H. E. F. Young.' 

''September 1, 1852." 

The following letter, from Sir H. E. F. Young 
to Mr. Hull, who is endeavouring to colonize 
lands on the Murray, requires no comment. 

Government House, Adelaide. Jime 28, 1852. 

" Dear Sir. — I have perused your letter book, and the 
correspondence opened by you with many of the residents 
in this colouy with a view of making known to your 
friends and other capitalists in England (whither you are 
now about to return), what are the rates of interest pro- 
curable on investments in landed freehold estates in South 
Australia; and more especially what are the piospects of 
investments in these tracts of land situated near the outlet 
of the river Murray to the Southern Ocean, at Port Elliot, 
in Encounter Bay.* 

On the general question, I concur with your numerous 
correspondents that the rate of interest on landed invest- 
ments, judiciously selected, cannot, in ordinary times, be 
estimated at less than 10 per ceat. per annam ; supposing 
always that the collections of interest are made by capi- 
talists resident in the colouy, or by honest and active 
agents. Ordinary times do not, however, now prevail, nor 
have they prevailed in this colouy since October, 1851 ; 
the labour market then became, and still is, disturbed by 
the discovery of gold-fields in the neighbouring province 
of Victoria. The gains there are so tempting,, although, 
fr-equently delusive, that they irresistibly dravv labourors 
from the more moderate but certain wages obtainable in 
pastoral, agricultural, and copper-mining pursuits. Yet, 
ultimately, and probably very quickly, a redundancy of 

♦Port Elliot, lat. 35deg. 32min. 45sec, S., long. i38deg, 
43min. 15sec. E. 



554 



AUSTRALASIA, 



labour will prevail at tke gold-fields, and the surplus will 
serve to recruit more largely than ever the labour market 
of this colony. The subsistence of the gold-diggers, and 
investments for their gains, must cause a demand for land 
and its products which will increase in proportion to the 
numbers and suece>s of the gold-seeking population. 
Hence, as copper and wool will retain their uses, and farm 
produce will continue to be of primary necessity, it will not 
only not supersede these; articles, but it will give enhanced 
value to the lands which yield them, and will stimulate 
their increased production. 

" On the more limirei question of the advantage of 
investmg capital in South Australia, in the purchase of 
Crown lands near the river Murray end Port Elliot. I 
would observe that the letter of the Honourable Mr. 
Owynue, 2tLL.C., of the 20th mstant, which forms part of 
the correspondence dow under my notice, puts this portion 
of the subject in its most appropriate light, and one which 
has my entire concuirence. His concise but pregnant 
statement is, that the river Murray is navigable for more 
than a thousand miles, and that its only j)racticable sea- 
mouth being at Port Elliot — ^to it, or to Port Adelaide, or 
to both, as it might more accurately be said, although in 
different proportions, there must arise from this great 
inland navigation a vast amoimt of trade. 

That this extensive navigability of the river Murray 
should have remained so long unserviceable to the conti- 
nent of xVustralia, and especially to South Australia, 
within whose territory flow so many hundred miles of its 
course to its final exit on the Southern Ocean, requires 
some explanation to persons ignorant perhaps, of the past 
and present condition of this infant colony ; and figuring 
only to their ov^m imagination how labour, wealth, art, 
science, and enterprise, teeming in Great Britain, would, 
v.dthout loss of time, have been engaged in improving this 
gigantic ''water privilege." The memorable and important 
discovery of the river Murray by Sturt, and the arduous 
and courageous exploration of it which his enterprise first 
carried to the ocean, and his fortitude retraced, despite 
the uncertainty of ever safely returning through a wilder- 
ness peopled with unknown tribes, no doubt gave a power- 
ful incitement to the subsequent colonization of South 
Australia. 

" In the early days, however, of the planttition of this 
colony, the impracticability of the sea-mouth of the ri\ er 
Murray ; its shiftmg and narrow channel ; its fearful surf 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



355 



and heavy rollers ; its unmitigated exposure to tlie swell 
of the great Southern Ocean ; the disappointments and fatal 
accidents which attended all attempts, save one, to enter 
it from the sea ; the ignot ance then felt of the power and 
dispositions of the aborigines on its banks ; the supposed 
insufficient depths of water through Lake Alexandria ; the 
absence in those days of steamers of light draught of water 
adapted to the navigation of rivers ; the then scanty 
number of colonists, who found for their immediate pur- 
poses a more than sufficient extent of agricultural and 
grazmg land adjacent to Port Adelaide in Gulf St. Vincent ; 
all these causes sufficed to render the solitary instance 
of the success of Captain Pullen, in 1841 (in entering 
the river from the sea, in a little cutter of thirty tons, 
which has never made its exit again), unproductive of 
further efforts in South Australia at that time, to pene- 
trate the interior of New Holland from the sea by the 
navigation of the Murray. Nor was this great object, 
whilst left unachieved for all practical purposes by enter- 
prise from hence, likely to engage the attention of the less 
interested colonists of New South Wales. Indeed, the 
squatters on the Australian continent— those useful pio- 
neers of colonization — were otherwise profitably employed. 
The occupation of the new country, which led to the set- 
tlement of Por Phillip in 1837, and of Twofold Bay in 
1839, had been cai ried m 1840, three hundred miles to 
the north beyond and behind Moreton Bay, whilst to the 
south and west, sheep and cattle stations extended beyond 
Port Phillip, to the very confines of South Australia ; thus 
colonisation and the attendant investments of commercial 
speculation, were chiefly directed to these outlets to the 
sea along the eastern side of the ridge of mountains pa- 
rallel to the Pacific, between the 26th deg. and 32nd deg. 
of latitude. 

" An inspection of the map of New Holland will show 
that the streams which rise from the eastern side of this 
mountam ridge (aback of Sydney), have but comparatively 
a short course to the sea ; moreover, from this side of the 
ridge the descent to the sea is steep and difficult. The 
ports north of Sydney are Moreton Bay, the Clarence river, 
and Port Macquarrie ; south of Sydney, Bateman's Bay, 
Twofold Bay, Port Phillip, and Portland Bay. Whilst, 
therefore, the remote in' erior on the opposite or western 
side of this mountain ridge, can have no other exit to the 
sea eastward than the above-mentioned ports, accessible 
©nly by a long, expensive, and difficult land carriage, it ia 



356 



AUSTRALASIA. 



obvious that the export of wool could not, beyond certain 
limits of distance, be continued with profit, because of the 
difficulty and cost of transport to its place of shipment ; 
and this limit to the wool-producing regi(m becomes prac- 
tically the terminus of the squatter's enterprise — the 
boundary of the location of Europeans ; the end of the 
war on the wilderness, because the beginning of a solitude 
untenanted by civilised man. But when we again revert 
to the ma}^, and view the western side of this mountain 
ridge, it is at once perceived that there is a remedy for this 
arrest of the progress of settlement. The waters of the 
Darling river, after a long circuitous course, unite them- 
selves with the river Murray, and reinforced with other 
tributaries, maintain for the benefit of all the country on 
the west side of the mountains, a continuous course to the 
Southern Oceaa, near Port Elliot, The great trade, then, 
which is likely to result from the steam navigation of the 
river Murray, comprises all that present and future pastoral 
produce on the western side of the mountain ridge aback 
of Sydney, which it will be dilficult and costly to send for 
shipment to the enumerated ports on the coast line of Xew 
South Wales and Port Phillip. 

This great tract reaches up to the fertile and extensive 
valley of the Murrimbidgee, which Mr. Edward Scott, of 
Moorunde, sub-protector of the aborigines, in a pubHshed 
report, states to be admirably adapted not only to the 
feeding of cattle and sheep, but also to the raising of gi-ain 
and other agricultural produce. Access to it by steamers 
of light draught of water, I believe, on the authority of 
others, to be certain ; and it appears probable, from the 
published account of Mr. Gei-stacker, that even the Hume 
or Upper Murray river at Albury, beyond the Mount 
Alexander gold district, may be made practicable for small 
steamers. In this event, Mr. Gwynne's before-quoted 
estimate of 1,000 miles of navigable waters, will fall short 
of the reality ; but even should this estimate, on the other 
hand, prove excessive, and that of Mr. Gerstacker still 
more so, I am, at least, enabled to bear personal testi- 
mony that, in September and October, 1850, the minimum 
depth of water, throughout an unimpeded course, from 
the junction of the ris ers Darling and Murray to the Port 
Elliot terminus, at the Goolwa tramway, a distance not 
shoi-t of 600 miles, was, in the channel, not less than 
eight feet. 

" Beyond the confines of South Australia, upwards, as 
far as this junction of the rivers, the prospect of trade 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



357 



will, it appears to me, be limited to the carriage of supplies 
to the pastoral stations, and to the transport of their wool 
and tallow. Trade will be further greatly stimulated by 
the supplies to and from the gold-fields of Mount Alex- 
ander, to which, and probably other auriferous districts, 
the most convenient route is by the river Murray ; whilst 
Melbourne, the see^port of this gold region, is accessible by 
sea more quickly from Port Elliot (the support of the 
Murray) in Encounter Bay, than from any other safe port 
in South Australia. 

A good arable soil, in a state fit for present cultiva- 
tion, in the remote parts of the basin of the Murray, if it is 
to be found at all, must, I think, be looked for, on the 
report of Mr. E. Scott, only in the valley of the Murrim- 
bidgee. The extent, however, of ara,ble land, within the 
limits of South Australia, contiguous to Port Elliot, or to 
the navigable waters of the river Murray, now open to 
purchase at public auction from the Crown, at the upset 
price of jf l. per acre, is 735,651 acres. The proceeds of 
the sale of these lands are applicable, by Act of Parlia- 
ment, to the extent of nearly one moiety of the whole, to 
the introduction of emigrants into the colony. These lands 
are indicated on the annexed tracing from the office of the 
Surveyor-General. 

" The settlement of this tract of land by persons accus- 
tomed to farming pursuits, possessed of some little pecu- 
niary means, and endowed with the still more valuable 
capital of health, youth, energy, sobriety, and industry, 
would, in my opinion, with the certain prospect of the 
steam navigation of the river Murray, be equivalent to the 
creation of a new colony. Substracting nothing from, but 
re-acting favourably on, the prosperity and value of land 
around the older districts dependent on Ports Adelaide 
and Wakefield, in Gulf St. Vincent, yet having the difficul- 
ties of the first locations lessened by proximity to these 
thrivmg districts, it seems to me that a population placed 
on this tract of land would eventually increase the re- 
sources and extend the capabilities of the province of 
South Australia to a degree undreamt of by those who have 
hitherto thought but little of districts not dependent on 
Port Adelaide. 

With respect to Port Elliot, the criticisms which have 
been passed, in doubt of its capaciousness and safety, are 
such only as new and untried ports frequently receive until 
they have become better known, Until this experience 
shall have been gained, it is satisfactory to know that 
Captain Lipson, R.N., the naval officer of the province, 



S58 



AUSTRALASIA. 



after frequent visits to it and inquiries respectiug its charae- 
ter, reports that two vessels of 500 to 1000 tons may lie at 
the existing moorings, which are in six and four fathoms of 
water, respective!}^, sufficiently sheltered by the break- 
water to be cousidered m a safe anchorage ; that after the 
port is better known, five or six large ships may anchor 
there ; and that it will probably prove safe to extend the 
anchorage for large ships much further out. A remarkable 
verification of this last expressed opinion has recently been 
furnished to Captain Lipson, in the case of the Araeer, a 
vessel of 400 tous, which, in a gale of wind blowiug in on 
the shore, came to anchor outside of the moorings, and 
beyond the shelter of the breakwater, where she remained 
safely, though greatly underhanded, both as to the num- 
ber and efficiency of her crew. Ever since the colony haa 
been founded, coastei s have been in the habit of going in 
and out of Port Elliot at all seasons of the year, whenever 
freights have offered ; and no accident has ever happened, 
or has any vessel ever been driven on shore, although fur- 
nished, as they generally are, with very inferior ground 
tackle. The holding ground, then, being thus proved to 
be so good, even outside of the moorings, it is only neces- 
sary to place additional moorings beyond the site of the 
present ones, whenever the exigencies of commerce may 
require this accommodation. The trade of Port Elliot 
will, however, probably for a long while, in connection 
with the river Murray, not require more tonnage than can, 
at any one time, at present safely find anchorage there. 
Of the readiness with which mails may be landed at Port 
Elliot, as compared with mails to be landed (especially in 
winter time) in Gulf St. Vincent, and of the great use to 
vessels bound to Port Elliot of the Sturt Light on Cape 
Willoughby, Kangaroo Island, it is only necessary that I 
should refer you to Captain Lipson's report, published in 
the Government Gazette of the 10th February last.* 

**Imay add, in conclusion, that the enterpi ising owner of 
the steamer of light draught of water, who purposes to 
enter the sea-mouth of the Murray river in November 
next, there to ply under contract for twelve trips at least, 
to the Darling river from the Goolwa, has my best wishes 
for the success of this hazardous mode of reaching the 
river, which will no doubt be successful, provided a favour- 

• Sturt Light, lat 55 deg. 49 min. 20 sec. S., long. 138 deg. 42 min. 
15 see. E. Port Elliot bears N. 65 deg, E., distance '29 miles. The 
light is a revolving one, witb a total elevation of 241 feet, and i» 
visible eight leagues. 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



able moment for entering is patiently waited for and oppor- 
tunely seized. Nevertheless, in common with Captain 
Stnrt, the first discoverer of the Murray, and with Captain 
PuUen, the first surveyor of its sea-mouthy I thiuk 

the elbow of the Murray, at the Goolwa, connected with 
Encounter Bay, as is now in progref^s by a tramway from 
Port Elliot, affords the best and most convenient outlet of 
the Murray river to the south ocean. 

"The information you have collected for the guidance 
of capitalists in England desirous of purchasing land in the 
localities adverted to in this letter, might no doubt easily 
have received my corroboration in a more concise form, by 
a simple reference to my official papers, already published, 
on the subject. Unwilling, however, that the great object 
of opening Port Elliot as a seaport for the river Murray 
should be exposed to the detriment of having its import- 
ance misunderstood, owing to what may seem a fastidious 
objection to the repetition of information alread yon record^ 
I have been led by a sense of public duty to write this long- 
letter, which I trust may satisfy the inquiries of your 
friends in England. 

I am, dear Sir, your obedient servant^ 

H. E. F. YouKG." 

*'Mr. Hull, Doran's Hotel, Adelaide." 



POSTSCRIPT. 



In the preceding pages we have endeavoured to 
delineate the geographical position, progress5 and 
capabilities of the different settlements of Australasia , 
The passing of the act (13 and 14 Yic. c. 59,) 
giving a new constitution, and granting additional 
j>rivileges to the various provinces, the disco- 



POSTSCRIPT. 



very of extensive Gold Fields, and the establish- 
ment of ocean steam communication, are events of 
such unprecedented importance, and productive of 
such extraordinary changes in the commercial 
world, that we find it necessary to append the fol- 
lowing authenticated documents, illustrating the 
changes that have taken place, and giving an idea 
of the future prospects of this most important por- 
tion of the possessions of the British Empire. 

We have extracted freely from both the South 
Australian Chronicle and Colonial Record^ and the 
Australian and New Zealand Gazette^ two valuable 
journals, published in London, furnishing every 
information respecting our south-eastern colonies, 
and are greatly indebted to the Sydney Morning 
Herald^ and the Melbourne Argus for our latest 
intelligence. The value of the documents selected 
from their columns will be a sufficient excuse for 
our reprinting them. The Official Address of Sir 
H. E. YpuNG, Governor of South Australia, the 
letter of G. F. Angus, Esq , and the Report from 
tlie Adelaide Chamber of Commerce, by George 
Elder, Esq., of the firm of A. L. Elder, and Co., 
are particularly important, as emanating from per- 
sonal attention, and an anxiety to furnish accurate 
information to the British public. 



APPENDIL 



AN ACT FOR THE BETTER GOVERNMENT OF HER 
MAJESTY'S AUSTRALIAN COLONIES. 

5th August, 1850, 

Whereas by an act passed in the sixth, year of the reign 
of her Majesty, intituled An Act. for the Government of 
New South Wales and Van Dieman's Land," it was 
enacted, that there should be within the colony of New- 
South Wales a legislative council, to consist of thirty-six 
members, and that twelve of the members of the said 
council should from time to time, in the manner therein 
mentioned, be elected by the inhabitants of the said 
colony ; and whereas an act was passed in the eighth year 
of the reign of her Majesty, intituled An Act to clear up 
Doubts as to the Regulation and Audit of the Accounts of 
the Customs in New South Wales," and another act was 
passed in the same year, intituled An act to explain and 
amend the Act for the Government of New South Wales 
and Van Dieman's Land :" And whereas by an act passed 
in the ninth year of the reign of his late Majesty Kin^ 
George the Fourth, intituled " An Act to provide for the 
Admmistration of Justice in New South Wales and Van 
Dieman's Land, and for the more effectual Government 
thereof, and for other Purposes relating thereto," His said 
Majesty, his heirs and [Successors, were empowered to 
appoint in Van Dieman's Land a legislative couhcii, to 
consist of such persons resident in the said colony, not 
exceeding fifteen nor less than ten, as his Majesty, his 
heirs and successors, should be pleased to nominate : Aud 
whereas the provisions of the last-mentioned act, so far aa 



362 



AUSTRALASIA. 



respects the council of Van Dieman's Land, have been 
made permanent by the said act of the sixth year of her 
Majesty : And whereas by an act passed in the sixth year 
of the reign of her Majesty, intituled " An Act to provide 
for the better Government of South Australia," her Majesty 
is empowered, in manner therein mentioned, to constitute 
within the said colony of South Australia a legislative 
council, consisting of the governor and seven other per- 
sons at the least : And whereas by an act passed in the 
tenth year of the reign of his late Majesty George the 
Fourth, intituled An Act to provide until the Thirty- 
first Day of December One thousand eight hundred and 
thirty-four for the Government of His Majesty's Settle- 
ments in Westein Australia on the Western Coast of New 
Holland," his said Majesty, his heirs and successors, with 
the advice of his or their privy council, were empowered 
to make, ordain, and (subject to such conditions and 
restrictions as to him or them should seem meet) to autho- 
rize and empower any three or more persons resident and 
being within the said settlements to make, ordain, and 
constitute, laws, institutions, and ordinances for the peace, 
order, and good government of his Majesty's subjects and 
others within the said Settlements : And whereas the last- 
mentioned act has been from time to time continued, and 
ultimately, by an act of the tenth year of her Majesty, 
was continued until the Thirty-first day of December one 
thousand eight hundred and forty -eight, and to the end of 
the then next session of Parliament. 

District of Port Philip to form a separate Colony, to he 
Tcnown as the Colony of Victoria. 

And whereas it is expedient that the district of Port 
Philip, now part of the colony of jSTew South Wales, 
should be erected into a separate colony, and that further 
provision should be made for the government of her 
Majesty's Australian colonies : Be it enacted, therefore, by 
the Queen's most excellent Majesty, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, 
and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and 
by the authority of the same, that after such provisions as 
herein-after mentioned shall have been made by the 
governor and council of New South Wales, and upon the 
issuing of the writs for the first election in pursuance 
thereof, as herein- after mentioned, the territories now 
comprised within the said district of Port Philip,, including 



APPENDIX. 



363 



the town of Melbourne, and bounded on the north and 
north-east by a straight line drawn from Cape How to the 
nearest source of the River Murray, and thence by the 
course of that river to the eastern boundary of the colony 
of South Australia, shall be separated from the colony of 
New South Wales, and shall cease to return members to 
the legislative council of such colony, and shall be erected 
into and thenceforth form a separate colony, to be known 
and designated as the colony of Victoria. 

The number of Legislative Council of New South Wales may 
he varied. A separate Legislative Council for the Colony 
of Victoria, 

IT. And be it enacted, that the number of members of 
which, after such separation as aforesaid, the legislative 
council of the colony- of New South Wales shall consist, 
shall, in manner hereinafter mentioned, be determined by 
the governor and council of New South Wales ; and there 
shall be within and for the colony of Victoria a separate 
legislative council, to consist of such number of members 
as shall in like manner be determined by the said governor 
and council ; and such number of the members of the 
legislative council of each of the said colonies respectively 
as is equal to one third part of the whole number of 
members of such council, or, if such whole number be 
not exactly divisible by three, one third of the next 
greater number which is divisible by three, shall be ap- 
pointed by her Majesty, and the remaining members of 
the council of each of the said colonies shall be elected 
by the inhabitants of such colony. 

Governor and Council of New South Wales to estahlish 
Electoral Districts, <kc. 

III. And be it enacted, that after the proclamation of this 
act in the colony of New South Wales it shall be lawful 
for the governor and legislative council of such colony, by 
an act to be for that purpose made and enacted in the 
manner and subject to the conditions now by law required 
in respect of acts made and enacted by the said governor 
and council, to determine the number of members of 
which after such separation as aforesaid of the said dis- 
trict of Port Philip therefrom, the legislative council of 
the colony of New South Wales shall consist, and also to 
determine the number of members of which the l^islative 



364 



AUSTRALASIA. 



council of the said colony of Victoria shall consist, and 
also to make all necessary provisions for dividing the 
territories which after such separation will be comprised 
within the colony of New South Wales into convenient 
electoral districts, or for cfjntiuuing such of the existing 
electoral districts as shall be deemed convenient, and for 
appointing and declaring the number of members of the 
council of the colony of New South "Wales after such 
separation to be elected for each such district, and for 
dividing the territories to be comprised in the colony of 
Victoria into convenient electoral districts, and for appoint- 
ing and declaring the number of members of the council 
of the colony of Victoria to be elected for each such dis- 
trict, and for the compilation and revision of lists of all 
persons qualified to vote at the elections to be holden 
within the several districts of the said colonies, respectively, 
and for the appointing of returning officers, and for the 
issuing, executing, and returning of the necessary writs 
for such elections, and for taking the poll thereat, and for 
determining the validity of all disputed returns, and other- 
wise for ensuring the orderly, effective, and impartial 
conduct of such elections ; provided that the writs to be 
issued for the first election of members of the legislative 
council of the colony of Victoria shall be issued by the 
governor of New South Wales or by such person as her 
Majesty for that purpose, by warrant under her royal sign 
manual, countersigned by one of her Majesty's principal 
secretaries of state, shall appoint. 

Qualification of Voters at Elections for Members of the 
Legislative Council. 

IV, And be it enacted, that every man of the a.ee of 
twenty-one years, being a natural-born or naturalized subject 
of her Majesty, or legally made a denizen of New South 
Wales, and having a freehold estate in possession situate 
within the district for which his vote is to be given, of 
the clear value of one hundred pounds sterling mouey 
above all charges and incumbrances in any way affecting 
the same, of or to which he has been seised or entitled, 
either at law or in equity, for at least six calendar months 
next before the date of the writ of such election, or in 
case a registration of electors shall be established next 
before the last registration of electors, or, beiug a house- 
holder within such district, occupying a dwelling house of 
the clear annual value of ten pounds sterling moDey, and 



APPENDIX. 



365 



having resided therein six calendar months next before 
such writ or registration as aforesaid, or holding at the 
date of such writ or at the time of such registration a 
licence to depasture lands within the district for which his 
vote is to be given from the government of New South 
Wales, or having a leasehold estate in possession situate 
within such district of the value of ten pounds sterling 
money per annumn, held upon a lease which at the date 
of such writ or at the time of registration has not less 
than three years to run, shall be entitled to vote at the 
election of a member of the legislative council : Provided 
always, that no man shall be entitled to vote who has been 
attainted or convicted of treason, felony, or other infamous 
offence in any part of her Majesty's dominions, unless he 
have received a free pardon or one conditional on not 
leaving the colony for such offence, or have undergone 
the sentence passed on him for such offence ; and provided 
also, that no man shall be entitled to vote unless at the 
time of such election or registration of electors (as the 
case may be) he shall have paid up all rates and taxes 
which shall have become payable by him as owner or 
leaseholder in respect of such estate, or as occupier in 
respect of such occupancy, or as the holder of a licence in 
respect of such licence, except such as shall have become 
payable during three calendar months next before such 
election or registration respectively. 

Authority of the Governor and Council of New South Wale9 
over colony of Victoria to cease. 

y. And be it enacted, that upon the issuing of such 
writs for the first election of members of the legislative 
council of the said colony of Victoria such colony shall be 
deemed to be established, and the legislative authority of 
the governor and council of New South Wales, and the 
powers of such governor, over and in respect of the terri- 
tories comprised in the said colony of Victoria and the 
revenues thereof, shall cease. 

Provisions of three first recited Acts to remain applicable to 
New South Wales, after separation of colony of Victoria. 

Vr. And be it enacted, that, subject to the provisions 
herein contained, the provisions of the said firstly-recited 
act of the sixth year of the reign of her Majesty, as ex- 
plained and amended by the said acts of the eighth year 



366 



AUSTRALASIA. 



of her Majesty, shall remain applicable to the said colony 
of New South Wales after such separation as aforesaid, and 
to the governor and legislative council thereof. 

Legislative Councils may he estahlished in Van Diemans 
Land and South Australia. 

VII. And be it enacted, that it shall be lawful for the 
legislatures now by law established within the colonies of 
Yan Dieman's Land and South Australia respectively, by 
laws or ordinances to be for that purpose made and 
enacted in the manner and subject to the conditions now 
by law required in .respect of laws and ordinances made 
by such legislatures, to establish within the said colonies 
of Van Dieman's Land and South Australia respectively a 
legislative council, to consist of such number of members, 
not exceeding twenty-four, as they shall think fit ; and 
that such number of the members of each council so to be 
established as is equal to one-third part of the whole num- 
ber of members of such council, or if such whole number 
be not exactly divisible by three such number as is next 
greater than one-third of the whole number, shall be ap- 
pointed by her Majesty, and the remaining members of 
such council shall be elected by the inhabitants of the 
colony in which snch council shall be established ; and it 
shall be lawful for such legislatures respectively, by such 
laws or ordinances as aforesaid, to make all necessary pro- 
visions for dividing the said colony of Van Dieman's Land 
and the said colony of South Australia into convenient 
electoral districts, and for appointing and declaring the 
number of members of council to be elected for each such 
district, and for the compilation and revision of lists of all 
persons qualified to vote at the elections to be holden 
within such districts, and for the appointing of returning 
officers, and for the issuing:, executing, and returning of 
the necessary writs for such elections, and for taking the 
poll thereat, and for determining the validity of all dis- 
puted returns, and otherwise for ensuring the orderly, 
effective, and impartial conduct of such elections. 

Present Comicils in Van Dieman's Land and South Austra- 
lia to cease on the issue of the fii'st Writs for the new 
Councils. 

VIII. And be it enacted, that immediately after the 
issue of the writs for the first election of members of a 



APPENDIX. 



8GT 



legislative council for Vau Dieman's Laud establislied by- 
law or ordinance under the powers herein contained, sucli 
of the provisions of the acts herein recited or referred to, 
or any of them, as relate to the constitution, appointment, 
and powers of a council in Van Dieman's Land, shall be 
repealed ; and immediately after the issue of the writs for 
the first election of members of a legislative council for 
South Australia established by law or ordinance under 
the powers herein contained, such of the provisions of the 
secondly herein recited act of the sixth year of the reign of 
her preseat Majesty as relate to the constitution, appoint- 
ment, and powers of a council in South Australia shall be 
??epealed. 

A Legislative Council may he established in Western Australia. 

IX. And be it enacted, that upon the presentation of a 
petition signed by not less than one-third in number of 
the householders within the colony of Western Australia, 
praying that a legislative council according to the provi- 
sions of this act be established withm such colony, and 
that provision be made for charging upon the revenues of 
such colony all such part of the expenses of the civil 
establishment thereof as may have been previously defrayed 
by parliamentary grants, it shall be lawful for the persons 
a,uthorized and empowered to make, ordain, and establish 
laws and ordinances for the government of the said colony, 
by any law or ordinance to be made for that purpose, 
subject to the conditions and restrictions to which laws 
■and ordinances made by such persons are now subject, to 
<3stablish a legislative council within such colony, to con- 
sist of such number of members as they shall think fit, 
and such number of the members of such council as is 
equal to one-third part of the whole number of members 
of such council, or if such number be not exactly divisible 
by three, one-third of the next greater number which is 
divisible by three, shall be appointed by her Majesty, and 
the remaining members of the council shall be elected by 
the inhabitants of the said colony ; and it shall be lawful 
for such persons as aforesaid, by such law or ordinance aa 
aforesaid, to make all necessary provisions for dividing 
Western Australia into convenient electoral districts and 
for appointing and declaring the number of members of 
council to be elected for each such district, and for the 
compilation and revision of lists of all persons qualified to 
vote at the elections to be holden within such districts, 



368 



AUSTRALASIA. 



and for the appoiniiug of returning officers, and for the 
issuing, executing, and returniog of the necessary writs 
for such elections, and for taking the poll thereat, and for 
determining the validity of all disputed returns, and 
otherwise ensuring the orderly, effective, and impartial 
conduct of such elections ; provided that no law or ordi- 
nance establishing such legislative council within the said 
colony of Western Australia shall have any force or effect 
unless provision be thereby made for permanently granting 
to her Majesty, her heirs and successors, out of the reve- 
nues of the said colony, towards defraying such of the 
expenses of the establishments of the said colony as may 
have been previously defrayed in whole or in part by par- 
liamentary grants, a yearly sum not less in amount than 
the sum which may have been lastly before the making of 
such law or ordinance authorized by Parliament to be 
issued and applied out of the aids or supplies granted by 
Parliament to defray the charge for one year of the said 
colony, and for raising the yearly sum so granted by 
means of sufficient taxes, duties, rates, or imposts to be 
levied on her Majesty's subjects within such colony. 

Provisions of 10 G, 4. c. 22. to continue in force till the issue 
of the first Writs for the Council in Western Australia. 

X. And be it enacted, that the said recited act of the 
tenth year of the reign of King George the Fourth shall 
be revived and continue in force until the issue of the 
writs for the first election of members of the legislative 
council of the said colony of Western Australia, and from 
and after the issuing of such writs such act shall be re- 
pealed ; and all laws, institutions, and ordinances made, 
ordained, and established, and all other acts done, in the 
said colony of Western Australia, by the persons autho- 
rized and empowered, or who if the said recited act had 
not expired would have been authorized and empowered, ^ 
in that behalf, shall be and be deemed to have been as 
valid and effectual as if this act had passed before the 
expiration of the said recited act. 

Poioer to alter Electoral Districts, and number of Members, drc. 

XI. And be it enacted, that it shall be lawful for the 
governor and legislative council of the colony of New 
South Wales, after the separation of the colony of Victoria 
therefrom, and also for the governors and legislative 



APPENDIX. 



369 



councils of the said colonies of Victoria, Van Dieman's 
Land, South Australia, and Western Australia respectively, 
after the establishment of legislative councils therein un- 
der this act, from time to time by any act or acts to estab- 
lish new electoral districts in any parts of the said colonics 
respectively, and to alter the divisions and extent of the 
electoral districts of the said colonies, and to alter and 
appomt the number of members of council to be chosen 
by bhe said districts, and to increase the whole number of 
members of such legislative councils respectively, and to 
alter and regulate the appointment of returning officers, 
and make provision in such manner as they may deem 
expedient for the issue and return of writs for the election 
of members to serve in such legislative councils respec- 
tively, and the time and place for holding such elections : 
Provided always, that where the whole number of mem- 
bers of council shall be increased such number of the ad- 
ditional councillors as is equal to one-third part of the 
whole increase, or if such whole increase shall not be 
exactly divisible by three such number as is next greater 
than one-third of the whole increase, shall be appointed 
by her Majesty, and the remaining additional members of 
council shall be elected by the inhabitants of the colony. 

Certain Provisions of 5 S 6 Vict. c. 7 6. and 7 <fc 8 Vict, c, 
7 4. to apply to Victoria, Van Dieman's Land, South Am- 
tralia, and Western Australia. 

XII And be it enacted, that all the provisions herein 
contained concerning the qualification and disqualification 
of electors in New South Wales, and subject to the provi- 
sions herein contained, all the provisions of the said firstly 
recited act of the sixth year of the reign of her Majesty, as 
explained and amended by the secondly-recited act of the 
eighth year of her Majesty, concerning the election of the 
elective members of the legislative council of New South 
Wales ; the qualification and disqualification of elective 
members ; the appointment of the non-elective members 
of such council, and the tenure of their seats, and their 
holding of ofiices : the resignation of members of such 
council, and the causes by which their seats may be va- 
cated ; the authority of the governor upon and in respect 
of vacancies ; the hearing and determination of questions 
respecting vacancies ; the places and times of holding 
such council ; the duration, prorogation, and dissolution 
thereof ; the election, allowance^ and disallowance of the 
R 2 



370 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Speaker ; tlie number or poi-tion of members competent to 
the despatch of business ; the decision of questions; the 
oath or affirmation to be taken or made and subscribed, 
and the declaration of qualification to be made, by mem- 
bercj ; the preparation, adoption, approval, and confirma- 
tion or disallowance of standing rules and orders : the 
issue of writs for elections upon vacancies and upon a dis- 
solution or other determination of such council ; the pro- 
posal of drafts of laws a.nd amendments to such council ; 
the giving and withholding of her Majesty's assent to 
bills, and the reservation of bills for the signification of 
her Majesty's pleasure thereon, and the bills so reserved ; 
the instructions to be conveyed to the governor for his 
guidance in relation to the matters aforesaid ; and the 
disallowance of bills by her Majesty, shall apply to and be 
in force in the colony of Victoria, and in each of the said 
colonies of Van Dieman's Land, South Australia, and 
Western Australia, in which a legislative council shall be 
established under this act, as if all such provisions were 
here repeated, the name of such respective colony being 
substituted for the name of the colony of Xew South 
Wales. 

Rrypeal of so much of 5 and 6 Victoria c. 7 6. as requires all 
Bills altering Judges' salaries to he reserved. 

XIII. Provided always, and be it enacted. That so much 
of the said firstly-recited act of the sixth year of the reign 
of her Majesty as requires that all bills altering the salaries 
of judges, or any of them, shall in every case be reserved 
for the signification of her Majesty's pleasure thereon, shall 
not apply to or be in force in the colonies of Victoria, Van 
Dieman's Land, South Australia, and Western ^.ustralia, 
or any of them, and after the establishment of the said 
colony of Victoria shall be repealed. 

Gwernors and Legislative Councils of Yictona, Van 
man's Land, South Australia, and Western Australia 
aathwized to make Laws. 

XIV. And be it enacted. That the governors of the said 
colonies of Van Dieman's Land, South Australia, and 
Western Australia, respectively, with the advice and con- 
sent of the legislative councils to be est?„blished in the 
said colonies under this act, shall have authority to make 
laws for the peace, welfare, and good government of the 



APPKNDIX. 



371 



said colonies respectively, and, with the deductions and 
subject to the provisions herein contained, by such laws 
to appropriate to the public service within the said colonies 
respectively the whole of her Majesty's revenue within 
such colonies arising from taxes, duties, rates, and imposts 
levied on her Majesty's subjects within such colonies : 

Appropriation of Taxes and Issue of Public Monty. 

Provided always, that no such law shall be repugnant 
to the law of England, or interfere in any manner with 
the sale or other appropriation of the lands belouging to 
the crown within any of the said colonies, or with the 
revenue thence arismg ; and that it shall not be lawful for 
any such couucil to pass, or for any such governor to assent 
to, any bill appropria.tiug to the public service any sums 
or sum of money, unless the governor, on her Majesty's 
behalf, shall first have recommended to the council to 
make provision for the specific public service towards 
which such money is to be appropriated ; and that no part 
of her Majesty's revenue in any of the said colonies arising 
from the sources aforesaid shall be issued, or shall be made 
by any such law issuable, except in pursuance of warrants 
under the hand of the governor of the colony, directed to 
the public treasurer thereof. 

Revenues to he charged lolth Expemes of Collection and 
Management. 

XV. And be it enacted, That the revenues of the said 
colonies of Victoria, Van Dieman's Land, South Australia, 
and Western Australia respectively shall be permanently 
charged with all the costs, charges, and expenses incident 
to the collection, management, and receipt thereof, such 
costs, charges, and expenses of duties of import aod ex- 
port to be regulated and audited in such manner as shall 
be directed by the commissioners of her Majesty's treasury 
of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and 
all such costs, charges, and expenses of other branches of 
the said revenue which are subject to be appropriated by 
the governors and councils of such colonies being subject 
to be regulated and audited in such manner as shall be 
directed by laws of such governors and councils. 

Provisions of 5 and 6 Victoria, c. 76, concerning Grants for 
Civil and Judicial Services repealed. 

XVI. And be it^enacted, That after the establishment o 



372 



AUSTRALASIA. 



the said co1o!:it of Victoria so much of the said firstly-re- 
cited p.ct of the sixth year of the reiga of her Majesty as 
makes payable to her Z>Iajesty, her heirs and successors, 
out of the revenue fund of the said colony of Xew South 
Wales, the sums therein mentioned for defraying the ex- 
penses of the services and purposes named in the schedules 
to the said act, and the provisions concerning the appro- 
priation of such spurns, shall be repealed. 

Gra/ats for Civil and Judicial Services. 

XVII. And be it enacted, That there shall be payable to 
her Majesty, every year, out of the revenue funds arising 
from taxes, duties, rates, and imposts levied within the 
said colony of Xew South Wales after the establishment 
of the colony of Victoria, the several sums mentioned in 
the schedule (A^ to this act ; and out of the like revenue 
fund levied within the said colony of Victoria after the 
establishment thereof, the several sums mentioned in the 
schedule (B) to this act ; and out of the like revenue fund 
levied within the colony of Van Dieman's Land after the 
establishment of a legislative council therein under this 
act, the several sums mentioned in the schedule (C) to this 
act ; and out of the like revenue fund levied withm the 
colony of South Australia after the establishment of a 
legislative council therein under this act, the several sums 
mentioned in the schedule (D ) to this act ; such several 
payments to be made for defraying the expenses of the 
services and purposes mentioned in the said schedules 
respectively, and the said several sums to be issued by the 
treasurers of the said colonies respectively in discharge of 
such warrants as shall be from time to time directed to 
them under the hands and seals of the governors of such 
colonies ; and the said treasurers shall account to her Ma- 
jesty for the same through the commissioners of her Ma- 
jesty's treasury of the United Kingdom of Great Britain 
and Ireland, in such manner and form as her Majesty shall 
be graciously pleased to direct. 

How the Appropriation of Sums granted may he levied. 

XVIII. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the 
governors and legislative councils of the said colonies of 
New South Wales, A^ictoria, Van Dieman's Land, and 
South Australia respectively, by any act or acts, to alter 
all or any of the sums mentioned in the said schedules 



APPENDIX. 



373 



respectively, and the appropriation of such sums to the 
services and purposes therein mentioned, but every bill 
which shall be passed by the council in any of the said 
colonies altering the salary of the governor, or altering 
the sums mentioned in the third part of any of the said 
schedules (A), (B), and (C), shall be reserved for the signi- 
fication of her Majesty's pleasure thereon, and imtil and 
subject to such alteration by act or acts as aforesaid, the 
salaries of the governors and judges shall be those respec- 
tively set against their several ofi&ces in the first parts of 
the said several schedules ; and accounts in detail of the 
expenditure of the several sums for the time being appro- 
priated under this act, or such act or acts as aforesaid of 
the governor and legislative council, to the several service;? 
and purposes mentioned in the said schedules, shall be 
laid before the legislative councils of such colonies respec- 
tively within thirty days next after the beginning of the 
session after such expenditure shall have been made : Pro- 
vided alwa^ys, that it shall not be lawful for the governor 
and legislative council of any of the said colonies, by any 
such act as aforesaid, to make any diminution in the salary 
of any judge to take effect during the continuance in office 
of any person being such judge at the time of the passing 
of such act ; and provided also, that it shall be lawful for 
the governors of the said colonies respectively (either be- 
fore or after such sums have been altered by act or acts of 
the governor and legislative council as aforesaid) to alter 
from time to time the sums appropriated to any of the 
services and purposes mentioned in the first parts of the 
said schedules, except the salaries of the governors and 
judges, and also the sums appropriated to any of the ser- 
vices and purposes mentioned in the second parts of the 
said schedules, but such governors respectively shall not 
by such alteration increase the total amount for the time 
being appropriated under this act, or such act or acts of the 
governor and legislative council, to the services and pur- 
poses mentioned in either of such parts of the said sche- 
dules, nor contravene any provision made by act or acts 
of the governor and legislative council for the permanent 
appropriation of any sum to any of such services and pur- 
poses. 

Governors to intimate intended Appropriation. 

XIX. And be it enacted. That within thirty days after the 
beginning of the first session in each year of the legislative 



ArSTRALASTA. 



councils of the said colonies of In ew South Wales, Victoria^ 
Yan Dieman's Land, and South Australia, the governors 
of such colonies respectively shall make known by message 
to such legislative councils the amount of the sums in- 
tended to be appropriated out of the sums applicable there- 
to to the several services and pui'poses named in the second 
parts of the said several schedules for the service of the- 
year then next ensuing. 

dth and 6th Yictorm, c. 7Q, s. 41, 
XX. And whereas by the said firstly-recited act of the 
sixth year of her Majesty it was enacted, that it should be 
lawful for the governors, by letters patent under the great 
seal of the colony of Xew South Wales, to incorporate the 
inhabitants of every county within the said colony, or of 
such parts of counties or other divisions as to him should 
seem fit, to form districts for the purposes of that act, and 
by such letters patent to establish a council in every such 
district for the local government thereof, subject to cer- 
tain provisions in the same act contained r 

Oertaiii Charters estalllshing District Councils avoided, and 
certain others authorized to be revoked on Petition. 
Be it enacted, That where under any letters patent 
issued imder the provision lastly herein -before recited there 
has not been before the proclamation of this act in the 
said colony of Xew South Wales any election of councillors 
for the district formed by such letters patent, such letters^ 
patent shall from and after such proclamation be void ; 
and where before such proclamation there has been an 
election of councillors for the district formed by any such 
letters patent, it shall be lawful for the governor of the 
said colony of Xew South Wales, and after the establish- 
ment of the colony of Victoria in the case of a district 
within the territories comprised in such colony, for the 
g:overnor of such colony, upon the petition of the council 
in such district, or if there be no such council existing, 
then, upon the petition of the inhabitant householders of 
such district, by letters patent under the great seal of the 
said colony of Xew South Wales or of the said colony of 
Victoria (as the case may require), wholly to revoke the 
letters patent forming such district ; 

Governors of New South Walen and Victoria may gi-aiit 
Cha.rter^ on Petition, hut not otherwise. 
And it shall be lawful for the governors of the said 



APPENDIX. 



37.5 



colony of JsTew South Wales or of the said colony of Vic- 
toria (as the case may require), upon the petition of the 
inhabitant householders of any district heretofore formed 
by any such letters patent as aforesaid which shall become 
void or be revoked under this act, or of any county, part 
of a county, or other division comprised in any such dis- 
trict, or in more than one such district, or of any other 
county, part of a county, or other division not comprised 
in any district formed by such letters patent as aforesaid 
which shall continue in force, or by any letters patent to 
be issued as herein-after mentioned, by letters patent 
under the ^reat seal of the said colony of New South 
Wales or the said colony of Victoria (as the case may re- 
quire) to incorporate the inhabitants of such district or of 
such county, part of a county, or other division to form a 
district for the purposes of the said firstly-recited act of 
the sixth year of her Majesty, and of this act, and by such 
letters patent to establish a council in every such district 
for the local government thereof ; provided always, that 
notice of every such petition for the grant of such letters 
patent for forming a district and establishing a counc?! 
therein, and of the time when the governor intends to take 
the same into consideration, shall be published by procla- 
mation one month 8.t least before the consideration of such 
petition ; and the provisions of the said firstly-recited act 
of the sixth year of her Majesty, concerning the provisions 
to be contained in letters patent issued under that act for 
forming districts and establishing a council in every such 
district, shall extend and be applicable to all letters patent 
issued under this act for forming districts and establishing 
district councils as if such provisions of the said act were 
here repeated, the name of the colony of Victoria, where 
the case may require, being substituted for the name of 
the colony of New South Wales ; and, save as herein pro- 
vided, it shall not be lawful for the governor of the said 
colony of New South Wales to form districts and establish 
councils in such districts as by the lastly herein-before 
recited enactment authorised or required. 

Provision of 6 Vict. c. 76. as to forming Districts, <kc. ex- 
tended to Van Dieman's Land, South Australia, and 
Western Australia, after Establishment of Legislative 
Councils. 

XXT. And be it enacted, that the provision of the said 
firstly-recited act of the sixth year of her Majesty as 



376 



AUSTRALASIA. 



amended by this act, authorising the governor of the said 
colony of New South Wales, upon such petition as herein 
mentioned, to form districts, and establish a council in 
eveiy such district, shall apply to and be in force in each 
of the said colonies of Van Dieman's Land, South Aus- 
tralia, and Western Australia, in which a legislative council 
shall be established uuder this act, as if such pro^ ision 
were here repeated, the name of such respective colony 
being substituted for the name of the colony of New 
South Wales. 

Provisions of 5 and 6 Vict. c. 76, concerning Bistnct Coun- 
cils, <fcc. extended to District Councils established under 
this Act. 

XXII. And be it enacted, that all the provisions of the 
said firstly-recited act of the sixth year of her Majesty, 
concerning the authority of district councils to make bye- 
laws, the transmission of a copy of every such bye-law to 
the governor of the colony, the disallowance and the time 
of coming into effect of sach bye-law, the authority of the 
governor to specify the metes and bounds of districts, the 
number of councillors for every district, and the time and 
manner of their election, to fix the qualification of the 
councillors, to nominate the councillors who shall form the 
fiyst councils in every district, to appoint the order and 
manner of thek going out of office, to fix penalties for 
qualified persons refusing to tp.ke office in the council, and 
to make all other necessary provisions for establishiag 
district councils, for defining their powers, and enabling 
them to exercise their functions, and the authority of the 
governor in every case of vacancy of the office of district 
councillor, if a new election be not made within the time 
in the same act mentioned, to nominate a person to fill the 
vacancy, shall extend and be applicable to all letters 
patent issued under this act for forming districts and 
establishing district councils, and to such districts and 
district councils, as if all such provisions were here re- 
peated, the name of the colony in which such district is 
formed being (where the case may require) substituted for 
the name of the colony of New South Wales. 

Certain Provision of this 5 and 6 Vict. c. 76, requiring 
Half the Expense of the Police Establishment to he lorme 
hy the several Districts, repealed. 

XXIII. And whereas by the said firstly-recited act of 



APPKNDIX. 



377 



the sixth year of the reign of her Majesty it was enacted, 
that one half of the expense of the police establishment of 
the said colony of New South Wales (exclusive of the 
convict establishment) should be defrayed out of the 
general revenue arising from taxes, duties, rates, and im- 
posts vs^ithin the said colony, and the other half should be 
defrayed by assessment upon the several districts of the 
colony, in such proportions as should be from time to time 
fixed by the governor and legislative council : be ifc enacted, 
that so much of the provision lastly herein-before recited as 
requires that half of the expense of such police establish- 
ment as aforesaid shall be defrayed by assessment upon the 
several districts of the colony shall be repealed. 

Governors and Legislative Councils may regulate Tolls and 
Rates in Districts, alter Constitution and Duties of District 
Councils, and Number and Boundary of Districts. 

XXiy. And be it enacted, that, notwithstanding any 
letters patent issued under the said firstly-recited act of 
the sixth year of the reign of her Majesty, or to be issued 
under this act, or anything in either of such acts contained, 
it shall be lawful for the governors and councils of the said 
colonies of New South Wales, Victoria, Van Dieman's 
Land, South Australia, and Western Australia respec- 
tively by any act or acts to make such regulations and 
provisions for or concerning the raising, assessing, and 
levying of tolls, rates, and assessments within or on or 
in respect of any public works or any property within 
districts formed in such colonies respectively under the 
said act or this act, and the appropriation of such tolls, 
rates, and assessments, and to make such alterations and 
provisions in and concerning the constitution, duties, and 
powers of district councils, and such alterations in the 
number and boundaries of districts, and such provisions 
for establishing district councils in new or altered dis- 
tricts, as to such respective governors and councils may 
seem meet. 

Existing Laws to remain in force. 

XXV. And be it enacted, that all laws and ordinances 
made under the provisions hereby repealed or otherwise, 
and which shall be in force in the territories comprised in 
the said colony of Victoria, and in the said colonies of 
Van Dieman's Land, South Australia, and Western Aus~ 



378 AUSTRALASIA. 

tralia respectively, at the time of the issue of the writs for 
the first election of legislative councils in the said colonies 
respectively under this act, so far as the same are consis- 
tent with the provisions of this act, shall continue in force 
in the said colonies respectively, subject, as to such laws or 
ordinances as would then have remained subject to be dis- 
allowed by her Majesty, to the authority of her Majesty to 
disallow the same within the time within which such dis- 
allowance might have been signified in case this act had 
not been passed, and subject to the power of the governors 
and legislative councils of the said respective colonies, in 
the manner and subject to the rules and restrictions herein 
prescribed, to repeal or vary such laws or ordinances ; and 
where under any law which shall be in force at the time 
aforesaid in the territories to be comprised in the colony 
of Victoria any powers are vested in or may be delegated 
to the governor of ISTew South Wales, the same, so far as 
respects all territories to be comprised within the colony 
of Victoria, and so far as the same are consistent with the 
provisions of this act, shall thenceforth be vested in and 
may be delegated to the governor of the said colony of 
Victoria. 



Removing Doitbts as to certain Taxes imposed hy Governor 
and Council of Van Dieman's Land. 

XXVI. And be it ena^cted, that so much of the said act 
of the ninth year of the reign of King George the Fourth 
as requires that the purposes for which every such tax or 
duty as therein mentioned may be imposed, and to or 
towards wMch the amount thereof is to be appropriated 
and applied, shall be distinctly and plainly stated in the 
body of every law and ordinance made or to be made by 
the governor and council of Van Dieman's Land, and en- 
rolled and recorded in the Supreme Court of the said 
colony, shall be or deemed to have been invalid by reason 
of such purposes not being so stated in the body of such 
law and ordinance. 

Customs Duties may he imjyosed on any Goods. 

XXVII. And be it enacted, that, subject to the pro- 
lusions of this act, and notwithstanding any act or acts of 
Parliament now in force to the contrary, it shall be lawful 
for the governor and legislative council of the colony of 
K@w South Wales, and after the establishment of legisla- 



APPl^NDIX. 



379 



tive councils therein respectively under this act for the 
respective governors and legislative councils of the colonies 
of Victoria^ Van Dienian's Land, South Australia, and 
Western Australia, to impose and levy such duties of cus- 
toms as to such respective governors and councils may 
seem fit on the importation into such respective colonies of 
any goods, wares, and merchandise whatsoever, whether 
the produce or manufacture of or imported from the 
Uoited Kingdom, or any foreign country : Provided always, 
that no new duty shall be so imposed upon the importa- 
tion into any of the said colonies of any article the produce 
or manufacture of or imported from any particular country 
or place which shall not be equally imposed on the im- 
portation into the same colony of the like article the 
produce or manufacture of or imported from all other 
countries and places w^hatsoever. 

A Supreme Court may he erected in the Colony of Victoria. 

XXVIII. And whereas under an act of the governor and 
council of New South Wales passed in the fourth year of 
the reign of her Majesty, intituled '^An Act to provide for 
the more effectual Administration of Justice in N^ew South 
Wales and its Dependencies," the number of judges of the 
Supreme Court of New South Wales constituted under the 
said act of the ninth year of King G-eorge the Fourth has 
been increased to five, and one of such judges is resident, 
and has such power, jurisdiction, and authority within the 
district of Port Philip, subject to such appeal to the said 
Supreme Court, as by the said act of the governor and 
council of New South Wales is provided : Be it enacted, 
that it shall be lawful for her Majesty, by letters patent 
under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great 
Britain and Ireland, to erect and appoint a court of judi- 
cature in the said colony of Victoria, which shall be styled 
" The Supreme Court of the Colony of Victoria ;" and 
such court shall be holden by one or more judge or judges, 
and shall have such ministerial or other officers as shall be 
necessary for the administration of justice in the said court, 
and for the execution of the judgments, decrees, orders, 
and process thereof ; and all the provisions of the said 
act of the ninth year of the reign of King George the 
Fourth, coBcerniug the appointment and removal of judges 
and officers of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, 
and for appointing persons to act in the place and stead of 
judges being absent, resigning, dying, or becoming mca- 



380 



AUSTRALASIA. 



pabls to act. and concerning appeals to her Majesty in 
council from judgments, decrees, orders, or sentences of 
such court, shall apply to the said Supreme Court to be 
ei'ected in the said colony of Victoria, hut so that the 
powers of the governor of Xew South Wales in relation to 
the matters aforesaid shall be vested in the governor of 
the colony of Victoria ; and from such time as shall be 
mentioned in such letters patent all the authorities, powers, 
and jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, 
and of any judge thereof, over or to be exercised within or 
in relation to the said colony of Victoria, including all 
admiralty jurisdiction exercisable within the limits thereof, 
shall cease to be had and exercised by such last-mentioned 
Supreme Court aud judge respectively, and shall thence- 
forth be vested in aud exercisable by the Supreme Court 
erected by such letters patent ; provided that in the mean- 
time the said authorities, powers, and jurisdiction of the 
said Supreme Court of Xew South Wales and of the judges 
thereof, within and in respect of the said colony of Victoria 
shall remain as if this act had not been passed, unless or 
until the same shall be varied by act of the governor and 
council of the colony of Victoria. 

Legislatures of Xeio South Wales, Van Dieman's Land, and 
Victoria empoivered to make further provisions for the 
administration of justice. 

XXIX. And be it enacted. That it sliall be lawful for the 
governors and councils of the said colonies of New South 
Wales, Van Dieman's Land, and Victoria respectively, from 
time to time, by any act or acts, to make such provision as 
to them may seem meet for the better administration of 
justice, and for defining the constitution of the courts of 
law and equity and of juries, within the said colonies re- 
spectively, or within any present or future dependencies 
thereof respectively, anything in the said act of the ninth 
year of King George the Fourth, or in this act, or in any • 
charter of justice or order in council made or issued in 
pursuance thereof respectively, or in any law, statute, or 
usage to the contrary thereof notwithstanding. 

Bowndaries of New South Wales and Victoria may he altered 
by order in council. 

XXX. And be it enacted, Thatin case at any time hereafter 
the legislative councils of the said Colonies of New South 



APPENDIX. 



381 



Wales and Victoria, or the legislative council of one of 
the said colonies^ shall petition her Majesty to alter the 
boundaries of the said colonies of New South Wales and 
Victoria, so as to transfer to one of such colonies a portion 
of the territories which, after the separation authorized 
by this act, shall be comprised in the other of them, it 
shall be lawful for her Majesty, if she shall think fit, by 
any order to be made with the advice of her privy council, 
to alter such boundaries in pursuance of the prayer of 
such petitions or petition, or in such varied manner as 
her Majesty with such advice shall think fit : provided 
always, that unless the councils of both the said colonies 
shall petition for an alteration of such boundaries, notice 
of the petition, and of the intention of her Majesty to 
order the same to be taken into consideration by her privy 
council, shall be given in such a manner as her Majesty 
shall direct to the legislative council which shall not have 
petitioned, six months at least before such petition shall 
be so considered. 

Duties not to he levied on supplies for troops; nor any 
duties, Sc. inconsistent with treaties. 

XXXI. Provided also, and be it enacted. That it shall not 
be lawful for the legislatures of any of the said colonies to 
levy any duties upon articles imported for the supply of 
her Majesty's land or sea forces, nor to levy any duty, 
impose any prohibition or restriction, or grant any exemp- 
tion, bounty, drawback, or other privilege, upon the im- 
portation or exportation of any articles, nor to impose any 
dues or charges upon shipping, contrary to or at variance 
with any treaty or treaties concluded by her Majesty with 
any foreign power. 

Povjer to governors and councils, ivith assent of her Majesty 
in council, to alter the constitution of legislative councils. 

XXXII. And be it enacted, That, nothwithstanding any- 
thing herein before contained, it shall be lawful for the gover- 
nor and legislative council of the colony of New South Wales, 
after the separation therefrom of the colony of Victoria, 
and for the governors and legislative councils of the said 
colonies of Victoria. Van Dieraan's Land, South Australia, 
and Western Australia respectively, after ihe establishment 
of legislative councils therein under this act, from time to 
time, by any act -or acts to alter the provisions o^ laws for 



382 



AUSTRALASIA. 



the time being in force under this act, or otherwise, con- 
cerniog the election of the elective members of such 
legislative councils respectively, the qualification of 
electors and elective members, or to establish in the said 
colonies respectively, instead of the legislative council, a 
council and a house of representatives, or other separate 
legislative houses, to consist respectively of such members 
to be appointed or elected respectively by such persons 
and in such manner as by such act or acts shall be deter- 
mined, and to vest in such council and house of represen- 
tatives or other separate legislative houses the powers and 
functions of the legislative council for which the same 
may be substituted : provided always, that every bill 
which shall be passed b}^ the council in any of the said 
colonies for any of such purposes shall be reserved for the 
signification of her Majesty's pleasure thereon ; and a copy 
of such bill shall be laid before both houses of parliament 
for the space of thirty days at the least before her Majesty's 
pleasure thereon shall be signified. 

Provision as to the reservation of hills for signification' of her 
Majesty's pleasure. 

XXXIII. Provided always^ and be it enacted. That the 
provisions of the said firstly-recited act of the sixth year of 
the reign of her Majesty, as explained and amended by the 
said secondly-recited act of the eighth year of the reign of 
her Majesty, concerning bills reserved for the signification 
of her Majesty's pleasure thereon, shall be applicable to 
every bill so reserved under the provisions of this act. 

Provision of 5 6 Vict. c. 76. reserving pmuers to define 
limits, dec. of New South Wales extended. 

XXXIV. And whereas by the said firstly-recited act of the 
sixth year of the reign of her Majesty's power is reserved to 
her Majesty by letters patent to be from time to time issued 
under the great seal of Great Britain and Ireland to define 
the limits of the said colony of ISTew South Wales, and to 
erect into a separate colony or colonies any territories 
which then were or were reputed to be or thereafter might 
be compri^^ed within the said colony of ISTew South Wales, 
provided that no part of the territories lying southward of 
the twenty-sixth degree of south latitude in the said colony 
of New South Wales should by any such letters patent 
as aforesa-id be detached from the said colony : And whereas 



APPENDIX. 



it is expedient that the power reserved to her Majesty as 
aforesaid should be extended over certain parts of the said 
territories lying southward of the twenty-sixth degree of 
south latitude, upon the application of the inhabitants 
thereof : 

Upon petition of inhabitants, territories lying northward of 
thirtieth degree of south latitude may he detached from 
New South Wales. 

Be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for her Majesty 
from time to time, upon the petition of the inhabitant 
householders of any such of the territories in the said 
recited proviso mentioned as lie northward of the thirtieth 
degree of south latitude, to detach such territories from 
the colony of New South Wales, and to erect such terri- 
tories into a separate colony or colonies, or to include the 
same in any colony or colonies to be established under the 
powers of the last-mentioned act ; and all the powers and 
provisions of the last-mentioned act in respect to any new 
colony or colonies to be established under such act shall 
extend to any new colony or colonies to be established 
under this enactment. 

Legislative councils may he established in the newly erected 
colonies. 

XXXV. Provided always, and be it enacted, That it shall 
be lawful for the legislature which may be constituted ac- 
cording to the provisions in the last-mentioDed act in any 
colony established under such act, or under the enactment 
herein-before contained, by any ordinance or ordinances to 
be made for that purpose, subject to the conditions and 
restrictions to which ordinances to be made by such legis- 
lature may by law be subject,, to establish a legislative 
council within such colony, to consist of such number of 
members as they shall think fit ; and such number of the 
members of such council as is equal to one third part of 
the whole number of members of such council, or if such 
number be not exactly divisible by three, one third of the 
next greater number which is divisible by three, shall be 
appointed by her Majesty, and the remaining members of 
the council shall be elected by the inhabitants of such 
colony ; and it shall be lawful for such legislature, by such 
law or ordinance as aforesaid, to make all necessary pro- 
visions for dividing such colony into convenient electoral 



384 



AUSTRALASIA. 



districts, and for appointing and declaring the number of 
members of council to be elected for each such district, 
and for the compilation and revision of lists of all persons 
qualified to vote at the elections to be holden within such 
districts, and for the appointing of returning officers, and 
for the issuing, executing, and returning of the necessary 
writs for such elections, and for taking the poll thereat, 
and for determining the validity of all disputed returns, 
and otherwise ensuring the orderly, effective, and impartial 
conduct of such elections ; and upon the establishment in 
such colony of a legislative council under this provision, 
all the provisions of this act and of the said firstly -recited 
act of the sixth year of her Majesty, and of the said 
secondly -recited act of the eighth year of her Majesty, 
which are hereby made applicable to the colony of Western 
Australia, after the establishment under this act of a 
legislative council therein, shall become applicable to the 
colony in which a legislative council is established under 
this provision, as if all such provisions were here repeated 
and applied to every such colony. 

Interpretation of ^'governor " 

XXXVI. And be it enacted. That by the term "gover- 
nor" of the colonies mentioned in this act, as used in this 
act, shall be understood the persons for the time being law- 
fully administering the government of such colonies 
respectively, and until her Majesty shall issue a commis- 
sion appointing a governor of the colony of Victoria, the 
superintendent of Port Philip shall be deemed the person 
administering the government of the colony of Victoria. 

Commencement of this act. 

XXXVII. And be it enacted, That this act shall be pro- 
claimed in New South Wales, Van Dieman's Land, South 
Australia, and Western Australia, by the respective gover- 
nors thereof, within six weeks after a copy of such act shall 
have been received by such governors respectively, and, 
save as herein expressly provided, shall take effect within 
such colomes respectively from the day of such proclama- 
tion thereof. 

Act may he amended, d;c. 

XXXVIII. And be it enacted. That this act may be 
amended or repealed by any act to be passed in this,! 
session of parliament. 



APPENDIX. 



385 



SCHEDULES referred to in the foregoing Act :— 
NEW SOUTH WALES. 

Schedule (A.) Part 1. 

£ 

Governor = . . - . 5,000 

Chief Justice „ . = . 2,000 

Two Puisne Judges - - - - 3,000 

Salaries of the Attorney and Solicitor General, 
Crown Solicitor, and contingent and miscella- 
neous Expenses of the Administration of Justice 
throughout the Colony - - - 19,000 

29,at)0 



Schedule (A.) Part 2. 

£ 

Colonial Secretary, and his Department - - 6,500 

Colonial Treasurer, and his Department - 4,000 

Auditor General, and his Department - - 3,000 
Salary of Clerk, and miscellaneous Expenses of 

Executive Council - - - - 500 

Pensions ^ - - - - 2,500 



16,500 



Schedule (A.) Parts. 

£ 

Public Worship .... 28,000 



VICTORIA. 

Schedule (B.) Part 1. 

Governor . _ . _ . 

Judge . - . . - 

Salaries of Attorney General and Crown Solicitor, 
and contingent and miscellaneous Expenses of 
the Administration of Justice throughout the 
Colony . . - - - 



8,50U 



£ 
2,000 
1,500 



5,000 



6 



386 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Schedule (B.) Pai-t 2. 

£ 

Colonial Secretary, and his Department - - 2,000 
Colonial Treasurer, and his Department - 1,500 
Auditor General, and his Department - - 1,100 
Salary of Clerk of Executive Council, and miscel- 
laneous Expenses - - - - 400 
Pensions - « - - . 50O 



5,500 



Schedule (B.) Part 3. 

£ 

Public Worship - - - - 6,000 



VAN DIEMAN'S LAND. 
Schedule (C.) Part 1. 

£ 

Oovernor - . . . . 2,000 
Chief Justice - - » . 1,500 
Puisne Judge .... - 1^200 
Salaries of Attorney and Solicitor General, Crown 
Solicitors, and contingent and miscellaneous 
Expenses of Administration of Justice through- 
out the Colony - - - - 13,300 



18,000 



Schedule (C.) Part 2. 

£ 

Colonial Secretary, and his Department - - 2,800 

Colonial Treasurer, and his Department - 1,800 

Auditor General, and his Department - - 1,600 
Salary of Clerk of Executive Council, and miscel- 
laneous Expenses .... 700 

Pensions - - - . , 2,000 



8,900 



Schedule (C.) Part S. 

£ 

Public Worship - . - - 15,000 



APPEJSDIX. 



387 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



Schedule (D.) Part 1. 

£. 

Governor - - - - - 2,000 

Judge ..... 1^000 

Salaries of the Advocate General and Crown Soli- 
citor, and contingent and miscellaneous Expenses 
of the Administration of J ustice throughout the 

Colony - - - - - 5,000 



8,000 



Schedule (D.) Part 2. 

£ 

Colonial Secretary, and his Department - 2,000 

Colonial Treasurer, and his Department - - 1,500 

Auditor General, and his Department - - 1,000 

Salary of Clerk of Executive Council, and miscel- 
laneous Expenses . . - . 500 



5,000 



This Act, conferring tlie New Constitution, so 
long expected, was received with every demonstra- 
tion of joy, in the various provinces, but the fol- 
lowing remonstrance was passed by the Sydney 
Legislative Council, and forwarded to the Right 
Honourable Earl Grey, Secretary of State for the 
cok)nies. 



AUSTRALASIA. 



REMONSTRANCE OF THE SELECT 
COMMITTEE OF THE LEGISLATIVE 
COUNCIL AGAINST THE ACT OF 
PARLIAMENT 13 and 14 VICTORIA, 
Cap. 59. 

We, the Legislative Council of New South Wales, 
in council a^ssembled, feel it a solemn duty which we 
owe to ourselves, our constituents, and our poste- 
rity, before we give place to the new legislature 
established by the 13 and 14 Yict., cap 59, to 
record our deep disappointment and dissatisfaction 
at the constitution conferred by that act on the 
colony we represent. .After the reiterated reports, 
lesolutions, addresses, and petitions, which have 
proceeded fr<'m us during the whole course of our 
legislative career, against the schedules appended to 
the 5 and 6 Vict., cap. 76, and the appropriation of 
our ordinary revenue therein made, by the sole 
authority of Parliamenl- — against the administra- 
tion of our waste lands, and our territorial revenue 
thence arriving — against tlie withholding of the 
customs department from our contiol — again=it the 
dispensation of the patronage of the colony by or 
at the nomination of the minister of the colonies — 
and against the veto reserved and exercised by the 
same minister, in the name of the Crown, in all 
matters of local legislation ; w e feel tliat we had a 
right to expect tliat these undoubted grievances 
would have been redressed by the 13 and 14 Vict., 
cap. 69 ; or else that power to redress them would 
have been conferred on the constituent bodies 



APPENDIX. 



389 



tliereby created, with the avowed intention of 
establishing an authority more competent than 
Piirliament itself to frame suitable constitutions for 
the whole group of the Australian colonies. These 
our reasonable expectations, have been utterly 
frustrated. The schedules instead of being abo- 
lished, have been increased. The powers of alter- 
ing the appropriations in these schedules, conferred 
on the colonial legislature by this new enactment, 
limited as these powers are, have been, in effect, 
nullified by the subsequent instructions of the colo- 
nial minister. The exploded fallacies of the Wake- 
field theory are still clung to ; the pernicious Land 
Sales Act (5 and 6 Yict., cap. 36.) is still main- 
tained in all its integrity ; and thousands of our 
fellow-countrymen (in consequence of the undue 
price put by that mischievous and impolitic enact- 
ment upon our waste lands, in defiance of the 
precedents of the United States, of Canada, and 
the other North American colonies, and even of 
the neighbouring colony of the Cape of Good 
Hope,) are annually diverted from our shores, and 
thus forced against their will to seek a home for 
themselves and children in the backwoods of Ame- 
rica. Nor is this all. Our territorial revenue, 
diminished as it is by this insane poHcy, is in a. 
great measure confined to the introduction among 
us of people unsuited to our wants, in many in- 
stances the outpourinor of the poorhouses and 
unions of the United Kingdom ; instead of being 
applied as it ought to be, in directing to our colony 
a stream of vigorous and efficient labour, calculated 
to elevate the character of our industrial population. 
The bestowal of offices among us, with but partial 
exceptions, is still exercised by or at the nomina- 
tion of the colonial minister, and without reference 
to the just and paramount claims of the colonists^ 



390 



AUSTRALASIA. 



as if the coiony itself were but the fief of that 
miDister. Tije salaries of the officers of the customs 
and all other departments of the government men- 
tioned in the schedules are placed beyond our 
control; and the only result of this new enactment, 
ushered as it w^os into Parliament by the Prime 
Minister himself with so much parade, and under 
the pretence of conferring upon us enlarged powers 
of self-government, and treating us, at last, as an 
integral portion of the British empire, is, that all 
the material powers exercised for centuries by the 
House of Commons are still withheld from us. 
That our loyalty and our desire for the mainte- 
nance of proper order are so far distrusted that we 
are not permitted to vote our own civil list, lest it 
might prove inadequate to the necessities of the 
public service. That our waste lands, and our 
territorial revenue, for which her Majesty is but a 
trustee, instead of being spontaneously surrendered 
as an equivalent for such civil list, is still reserved, 
to our great detriment, to swell the patronage and 
power of the ministers of the crown. That whilst 
in defiance of the declaratory act (18 Geo. III., 
cap. 12, sec. 1.), which has hitherto been consi- 
dered the Magna Charta of the representative 
rights of all the British plantations, a large amount 
of our public revenue is thus appropriated by the 
authority of Parliament, we have not the poor 
consolation of seeing that part which is applied to 
the payment of the salaries of our public officers 
distributed as it ought to be, exclusively among 
the settled inhabitants ; and that, as a suitable 
climax to this general S3'stem of misrule, our colo- 
nial legislature is not allowed to exercise the most 
ordinary legi^^lation which is not subject to the veto 
of the colonial minister of the day. 

Thus circumstanced, we feel that on the eve of 



APPENDIX. 



391 



this council's dissolution, and as the closing act of 
our legislative existence, no other course is open to 
us but to enter on our journals our solemn declara- 
tion, protest, and remonstrance, as well against the 
act of Parliament itself (18 and 14 Yict., cap. 59,) 
as against the instruction of the minister by which 
the small power of retrenchment that act confers 
on the colonial legislature has been thus over- 
ridden ; and to bequeath the redress of the griev- 
ances, which we have been unable to effect by con- 
stitutional means, to the Legislative Council by 
which we are about to be succeeded. 

We, the Legislative Council of New South 
Wales, do accordingly hereby solemnly protest, 
insist, and peclare as follows : — - 

1st. The Imperial Parliament has not, nor of 
right ought to have, any power to tax the people 
of this colony, or to appropriate any of the moneys 
levied by authority of the colonial legislature ; that 
this power can only be lawfully exercised by the 
same legislature ; and that the Imperial Parlia- 
ment has solemnly disclaimed this power by the 
18 Geo. nr., cap. 12, sec. I., which act remains 
unrepealed on the imperial statute book. 

2nd. That the revenue arising from the public 
lands, derived as it is wholly from the value im- 
parted to them by the labour and capital of the 
people of this colony, is as much their property as 
the ordinary revenue, and ought therefore to be 
subject only to the control and appropriation of the 
colonial legislature. 

3rd, That the customs and all other depart- 
ments should be subject to the direct supervision 
and control of the same legislature ; that it should 
have the appropriation of the gross revenues of the 
coh}ny, from whatever source arising ; and, as a 



392 



AUSTRALASIA. 



necessary consequence of this authority, the regn- 
lation of the salaries of all colonial officers. 

4th. That all offices of trust and emolument 
should be conferred only on the settled inhabitants, 
the office of governor alone excepted ; that this 
officer should he appointed and paid by the Crown ; 
and that the whole patronage of this colony should 
be vested in liim and his Executive Council, who 
in its dispensation should be wholly unfettered by 
any instructions from the minister for the colonies. 

-5th. That plenary powers of legislation should 
be conferred upon and exercised by the colonial 
legislature for the time being ; and that no bills 
should be reserved for the signification of her 
Majesty's pleasure, unless they affect the prero- 
gatives of the crown, or the general interests of the 
empire. 

Solemly protesting against these w^rongs, and 
declaring and insisting upon these our undoubted 
rights, we leave the redress of the one and the 
assertion of the other to the people whom we 
represent, and the legislature which shall follov/ us> 

W, C. Wentworth, Chairman. 

Legislative Council Chamber, 
Sydney, April 29, 1851, 

In reply to this remonstrance, the following 
despatch was forwarded by the Right Honourable 
Earl Grey, to His Excellency Sir Charles A. Fitz 
Roy, Governor of Ne^^ South Wales: — 

Downing Street, 2Sd January, 1852. 
Sir — [ have to acknowledge your despatch, ISTo. 105, of 
ihe 18th June last, enclosing 8n address from the late 
Legislative Council of ?^ew South Wales, embodying a 
Declaration and Remonstmnce against the Constitutional 



APPENDIX. 



893 



Act 13 and 14 Vic, cap. 59. The same document had 
reached me a short time before, with a letter from the 
speaker of the council. 

2. It cannot be otherwise than a subject of regret to me, 
that the council should have entertained so much objec- 
tion to different provisions of that measure, and should 
have thought it necessary to declare those objections in 
this formal shape before separating for the last time. But 
I must be permitted to doubt whether this remonstrance 
accurately expresses the feeling of the community. 

3. For it is certain that her Majesty's government, in 
forming this measure, took as much pains as was in their 
power, to make themselves acquainted with, and to consult 
the feelings, as well as the wants, of the colonists, and had 
every reason to believe that they had succeeded in doing 
8o, for the report of the Committee of Privy Council, 
which was closely followed in the bill they submitted to 
Parliament, was received in New South Wales with very 
general expressions of satisfaction. In the Port Philip 
district, which was chiefly affected by the proposed bill, 
that satisfaction was expressed in the strongest manner ; 
and in the remainder of the colony likewise, public opinion, 
from such evidence as could be collected here, appeared 
decidedly favourable to it. I do not mean to say that 
there were not differences of opinion as to some of the pro- 
posed provisions, such differences are unavoidable on poli- 
tical subjects of great interest ; but assuredly there was 
no token of that deep disappointment and dissatisfaction" 
which the council now express. 

4. The act therefore which embodies the recommenda- 
tions of the report thus favourably received, from which 
it only slightly vai ies, and not, I believe, in any of those par- 
ticulars to which the objections now taken by the council 
relate, can hardly be supposed to be unacceptable to the 
colonists. If, indeed, the institutions created by it had 
been tried and found insufncieut — if any of its provisions 
had been found oppressive or impracticable — thenitw^ould 
be perfectly natural that those whose anticipations had 
been favourable should profess themselves disappointed. 
But it has not been tried at all : and I am therefore en- 
titled rather to suppose that this declaration of the Legis- 
lative Council does not, as I haA e said, accurately lepresent 
i)ublic feeling, than that public feeling has thus changed 
without a motive. 

6. I feel, however, that too much weight is due to the 
authority of that body which has now oi)peared for th© 
s 2 



394 



AUSTRALASIA. 



last time, after conliicting the legislative affairs of the 
colony down to the period of its separation, to admit of 
my receiving a remonstrance from them condemning so 
strongly what has been done by her Majesty's government, 
or rather by the Imperial Parliament, without recording 
fully the grounds on which I think myself entitled to deny 
the justice of their objections to the measure which has 
called forth their censure. 

6. And for this purpose I must repeat the declaration 
which her Majesty's government had frequent occasions to 
make when the act was in contemplation, namely, that it 
did not purpose, or profess, to make a new constitution 
for New South Wales. Its primary object (as regarded 
the colony) was the separation of Port Philip. Its farther 
object was to accommodate the existing constitution to 
that separation. The changes made in that constitution 
were for the most part inconsiderable, and their effect was 
only to extend, in no one instance to curtail, existing rights. 
But there was one fundamental alteration, namely, that 
it g8.ve (subject to certain conditions) to the two legisla- 
tures the power, which the former united one did not 
possess, of amending and altering, almost to the fullest 
extent, their own institutions. This, and this only, was 
the great constitutional change effected by the act. And 
no allegation has yet reached me that the powers thus con- 
ferred on the legislatures are likely to prove, in any de- 
gree, inadequate to the purposes of good government and 
progressive improvement. 

7. I must, therefore, regard the remonstrance, except 
in some points of detail, rather as a protest against the 
principles on which the Australian provinces have hitherto 
been governed, and again?t some laws affecting those 
colonies which Parliament has thought fit to maintain^ 
than against this particular act, 

8. With regard to the schedules of expenditure, it is 
obvious on the face of the act, that the powers of the new 
legislatures over them will be considerably more extensive 
than those possessed by the old one. I am not aware to 
what particular expressions of mine the legislative council 
refer, when they say that those powers have been nullified 
by the subsequent instructions of the Colonial Minister. 
I stated in my despatch transmitting the act, that it was 
essential that existing interests should be protected ; to 
this I camnot suppose that the legislative council entertain 
any objection ; the declaration was made out of regard to 
the natural apprehensions of those who were to be ren- 



APPExNDIX. 



395 



dered more dependent on the votes of the legislature than 
heretofore, and not from any expectation so iDjurious to 
the legislature as that such a restriction would be distaste- 
ful. I referred, further, to the opinion of the Committee 
of the Privy Council, that the salaries of the principal 
officers ought to be permanently granted ; and if this is 
the restriction complained of, I cannot certainly do other- 
wise than repeat my agreement in that opinion. It was 
indeed the conviction that the maintenance of this prin- 
ciple is very essential to the success of constitutional go- 
vernment at its outset, and not any wish to secure parti- 
cular sums for p?irticular services, which mainly induced 
Parliament to preserve this portion of the former consti- 
tution of New South Wales, subject to the encreased 
power of alteration conferred on the legislature. 

9. The legislative council, if I understand them rightly, 
allege that the maintenance of these schedules involves a 
violation of the Deelaj atory Act, 18 Geo. Ill,, cap. 12, an 
objection which, as far as I am aware, is for the first time 
urged against them. It might be sufficient to answer that 
the act in question refers in tei ms only to the imposition 
of taxes by the Imperial Legislature, and the appropria- 
tion of the produce of taxes so imposed. But it is more 
important to observe that the Act of George III., neither 
declares, nor was intended to declare, anything beyond 
the renunciation by Parliament of any right to interfere 
with chartered provincial legislatures. The constitution 
of New South Wales is itself created by act of Parliament, 
superseding that form of government which, under the 
peculiar circumstances of the colony, it had been thought 
necessary to maintain until ten years ago. And Parlia- 
ment, in creating such a constitution, had an unquestion- 
able right to annex to the grant such conditions as it might 
think expedient. 

10. The administration of the waste lands is a subject 
which I should have preferred to consider independently 
of the Constitutional Act, with- which it does not appear 
to me to have any very close connection ; but as the legis- 
lative Council thought it right to mtroduce this topic into 
their remonstrance, I cannot do otherwise than advert to 
what they have urged ; and in doing so it is my duty not 
to withhold the expression of my decided dissent from the 
doctrine that the waste lands of New South Wales^ or the 
revenue derived from them, are in any reasonable sens& 
the exclusive propeity of its inhabitants; or that their 



AUSTRALASIA. 



representatives ought to have, as of right, the control and 
disposal of that revenue. 

11. The waste lands of the vast colonial possessioins of 
the British Empire are held by the Crown, as trustee for 
the inhabitants of that empire at large, and not for the in- 
habitants of the particular provinces, divided by arbiti'ary 
geogryphical limits, in which any such waste lands happen 
to be situate. Otlierwise this consequence would follow : 
That the first inhabitants of any of these vast provinces 
(if possessing those representative institutions which arise 
as of right in ordinary British colonies), are indefeasably 
entitled to administer all the lands and land revenue of 
the great unexplored tract, called a province, of which 
tlicy occupy an extremity, wholly without regard to the 
interests of the nation which has founded the settlement, 
perhaps at great expense, in order to serve as a home for 
her own emigi-ants, and a market for her own industry. 
For the right thus defined and claimed by the legislative 
council, if their expressions were to be strictly taken, 
would belong as fully to the four thousand inhabitants of 
Western Australia as to the two hundred thousand of Is evv 
South Wales ; nay, would have equally belonged to the 
first few families which settled in a corner of Xew Zealand, 
and would entitle each small community from the first 
day of its planting, to the ownership of tracts sufficient 
to maintain empires. 

12. When, and on what conditions, it may be desirable 
to transfer the control of the waste lands of a colony to its 
local legislature is, in my belief, a question of expediency, 
and not of right — of expediency respectively, both to the 
local community and to the people of the empire at large, 
whose claims require joiiit consideration and mutual ad- 
justment. And I consider that of the Australian waste 
lands — lands to which I must add that their present valne 
has been mainly given through the expenditure incurred 
by this country in founding, maintaining, and defending 
the several settlements — to be for the present wisely, as 
well as rightfully, vested in the general government, under 
the strict rules imposed by Parliament. 

13. But while such are my views as to the right under 
which this revenue is administered, I willingly acknow- 
ledge that it is one most essential duty of those who ad- 
minister it to regard, in an PspecipJ manner, the interestg 
of those who have established themselves on the spot, and 
whose purchases afford the fund to be disposed of. And 



APPExNDIX. 



3.97 



I believe this object to be attained in a high degree by the 
existiDg arrangement. ^ 

14. It will be remembered that the Waste Lands Act, 
now termed "pernicious/' was adopted on the recom- 
mendation of a Committee of the House of Commons, by 
which the whole subject was investigated with the utmost 
eare. The object of this act was to give permanence and 
more complete effect to a course of policy regarding those 
lands which had already been adopted, to some extent, in 
the beginning of 1836, by the executive goverument. 
From the adoption of that policy may be dated the extra- 
ordinary, and, as I believe, unparalleled advance which 
the colony has made in wealth and prosperity. 

15. Such being the circumstances under which Parlia- 
ment has thought fit to entrust to the crown the expen- 
diture of the territorial revenue in the Australian Colonies, 
with the obligation of applying not less than one-half of 
the net receipts from the sale of land to emigration from 
the United Kingdom, it is to me a subject of surprise and 
regret that the council should have seen reason to express 
the opinion that the duty thus imposed on the advisers of 
the crown has been so ill performed as to warrant the 
assertion that the use of the territorial revenue had been 
in a great measure confined to the introduction of people 
nnsuited to the wants of the colony, and in many instances 

the outpourings of the Poor Houses and of the United 
Kingdom." The vievf thus communicated to me is cer- 
tainly inconsistent with any of the detailed information 
which has been furnished respecting the successive emi- 
grant ships as they reached Australia, and with the gene- 
ral opinions previously transmitted from all the colonies 
to which emigrants have been sent. 

16. Emigration to New South Wales, by means of public 
funds, having been resumed in the year 1847, no fewer 
than 31,400 persons had been sent out to this one colony 
since that time by the emigration commissioners, at the 
date when they made their last annual report, on the 2d 
of May, 1851, and any one who consults the detailed re- 
ports which have been made respecting these emigrants on 
their reaching the colony, and which are republished in 
the Annual Eeport of the Emigration Commissioners," 
may easily see how small, amidst this great multitude, is 
the proportion of persons of whom there has been any 
serious complaint. Nor have there been wanting general 
testimonials of a gratifying nature to the satisfaction felt 



398 



AUSTRAIA^IA. 



-with the character of the emigrants selected and sent out 
by the, emigration commissioners. 

17. The odIy part of this emigration against which any 
deciriedlv unfavourable opinion was expressed, was that 
which was called Assisted Emigration." But this mode 
of promoting emigration was adopted contrary to my own 
opinion and that of the emigration commissioners, in 
deference to the urgent representations of gentlemen who 
were supposed to enjoy the confidence of the colonists, 
and more especially of one to whom the legislative council 
had granted a salary for his services as agent for the colony, 
and who was therefore entitled to be listened to with at- 
tention when he urged on its behalf that the plan to 
which I adverted should be adopted. For this reason, 
and because in carrying on a service of so comprehensible 
a character, and comparatively so recent an origin as 
emigration, I have always thought it right not to refuse 
a trial to any reasonable project advocated by gentlemen 
interested in the supply of labour to the colony ; I gave 
directions to the emigration commissioners to try an ex- 
periment, and with great caution the plan of what has 
been called assisted emigration. At Sydney (at Melbourne 
a different opinion was entertained), the experiment was 
con>idered to have failed, and it was therefore im.mediately 
discontinued. 

18. But setting aside this experimental measure, I am fully 
justified in asserting that all the reports as to the emigrants, 
made at the time of their arrival, tend to establish the con- 
clusion that the arduous undertaking of collecting and con- 
veying to Australia so large a body of people from all parts of 
the United Kingdom, has been executed in a manner highly 
advantageous to the colorsy, and credita.ble to the board 
by which it was conducted. I must add that the reports 
which support this conclusion were made by persons who 
have shown themselves vigilant in delecting, and prompt 
in exposing those cases of abuse which it was impossible 
to expect should not occasionally occur in conducting 
emigration on so large a scale ; nor can there be any doubt 
that these reports expressed what was the general opinion 
of the settlers at the time. 

19. The council further declares, that "the custom?, 
and all other departments should be subject to the direct 
supervision and control of the colonial legislature, which 
should have the appropriation of the gross revenues of the 
eolony, from whatever source arising." 

20. I have no wish to controvert the assertion that the 



APPENDIX. 



399 



colonial legislature ought to be enabled to exercise a 
*^ superintendence," and in one sense "acontrolj' over 
the administration of the customs as of other departments 
of the public service, but I have to point out that the 
power of exercising a superintendence over the customs' 
department has already been in effect conferred upon the 
legislative council by my circular despatch of 8th of 
August, 1850, which the legislative council, in framing 
this remonstrance, seem to have entirely overlooked. By 
that despatch the management of the customs' department, 
which had been formerly retained in their own bands by 
the lords commissioners of the treasury (as was necessary 
while the former navigation laws were in force) has been 
entrusted to the local government, subject to the sams 
conditions as other branches of the public service. The 
government has ever shown a perfect readiness to com- 
municate to the legislative council the most ample infor- 
mation as to the manner in which the administration is 
conducted ; and thus the people of New South Wales, 
through their representatives, possess the same powei's 
with their fellow subjects at home, of interfering to correct 
any abuse or mismanagement which may occur in the 
conduct of their affairs, by advice or remonstrance addressed 
to the crown, or the governor, by whom the crown is 
represented. No more control than this over the customs 
department could be given to the legislative council of 
New South Wales, without violating those important 
constitutlo.'ial principles as to the strict separation of 3 ^e 
cutive from legislative functions, which in this country 
ha=? always been considered expedient to maintain. 

21. With regard to the claim that the gross instead ot 
the net revenues derived from the customs should be placed 
at the disposal of the legislature, I have to observe that 
in this respect the lav/ of New South Wales is preoisely 
the same with that which has always existed in this country, 
where the crown has always had the power of payiag ouL 
of the gross revenue the expenses of collection and the 
«alaries of the officers employed in it. I believe this 
practice to be tiiafc best calculated to ensure an efficient 
performance of this important branch of public business ; 
and coupled with the rule that full information as to the 
details of the expenditure incurred, shall, when called 
for, be laid before the legislature, it affords also in my 
judgment ample security against abuse. At all events, it 
can hardly be considered that there is any grievance to 
be complained of in this matter, when the legisLitive 



400 



AUSTRALASIA. 



council is placed, with regard to it, precisely on the same 
footing with the imperial parliament. 

22 . On the subject of official appointments, it is impossible 
for her Majesty's government to recognize, on the part of 
the inhabitants of Xew South Wales, any monopoly of a 
right to such situations, so as to preclude them from being 
bestowed on others of her Majesty's subjects. The in- 
habitants of iS"ew South Wales are not considered dis- 
qualified from receiving similar appointments, either in 
other colonies or at home ; nor could anything be more 
injurious to the interests of the Briiish Empire than to 
lay down a rule by which it should be broken up into a 
number of small communities, the m^embers of each of 
which should be considered as only admissible to employ- 
ment in that to which they more immediately belonged. 

23. But while the principle of regarding all her 
Majesty's subjects as admissible to office in New South 
Vvales cannot be abandoned, there has assuredly been no 
practical grievance inflicted in this" respect on the in- 
habitants of the colony, siuce, for several years past, 
public employments there have, with scarcely an exception, 
been filled by persons selected by the governor, whose 
nominations have been almost invariably approved by the 
secretary of state. And I consider it of great importance 
to the interests of the colony, as tending to secure a good 
selection of persons for such employments, that the ex- 
isting rule should be maintained, by which the governor 
i^ required to report his appointments, and receive her 
Majesty's confirmation of them, if they are to offices ex- 
ceeding a certain value. 

24. With regard to the last clause of the protest, which 
claims what are termed plenary powers for the local legis- 
lature, it is scarcely necessary to remark that although the 
council naturally confine their declaration to the case of 
the province which they have represented, it is impossible 
fur me to notice it, in answer, except as applying generally 
to the colonial possessions of the British crown. For the 
constitutional rule or priuciple against which protest is 
here made, is equally in force in every colony, from th© 
comparatively old and numerous communities in North 
America, down to the smallest settlement enjoying a 
separate legislature. It could hardly be altered in one 
colony without a general change of system, and the in- 
troduction of so vast a change would require far more 
practical and pressing grounds to justify it than what I 



APPENDIX. 



401 



must term a theoretical preference of some diflferent and 
untried scheme. 

25. It is not denied that the governor of a colony, as 
representing the crown, must necessarily be a party to all 
legislation ; and there would be obvious objections to 
placing in the hands of the ablest governor the power of 
binding the crown by his acceptance of acts, in necessary 
ignorance of the views which the Crown, through its ad- 
visers, charged with the superintendence of the general 
interests of the Empire, may entertain. This, I believe, 
to be the main ground on which this power has been gene- 
rally retained and exercised by the Crown from the earliest 
periods of colonial history; nor does it seem to me, that it 
could be abandoned with safety to the permanence of th@ 
connection between the mother country and her colonies. 

26. I am satisfied, at all events, that they are doing little 
service to the cause of good government who urge the 
adoption of a change of such magnitude as this, unless 
they are prepared with a well considered substitute for 
the system which they propose to abandon. I am aware 
of no substitute having been proposed which, in my 
opinion, answers this description. The only one which I 
have seen suggested and to which I believe the Legislative 
Council to refer, although I am not certain of their 
meaning, is this, — that subjects of legislation should be 
divided into Local and Imperial ; that on the former 
the Governor should give or withhold the Royal Assent 
without farther confirmation from the Crown ; that on the 
latter the local Legislature should have no power at all, its 
acts or any portions of them affecting these siibjects being 
absolutely null and void. And these heads so reserved 
are of course numerous, including amongst others the very 
extensive one of the Prerogative of the Crown. 

27. I am unwilling to enter on a subject merely contro- 
versial, and which is not fully placed before me with the 
arguments of those who advocate the innovation. But I 
cannoj^ refrain from observing on the practical inconve- 
niences which would seem necessarily to attend a system 
under which large subjects, and many of them very diffi- 
cult to define, would be absolutely withdrawn from the 
power of the local Legislature ; so that they would be 
at once unable to legislate at all on many matters on which 
it is most desirable they should legislate, subject to the 
control of the Crown, and at the same time under constant 
uncertainty whether acts, passed with strictly constitutional 
intentions, might not be invalid through some inadvertent 



402 



AUSTRALASIA. 



infringement of the limits of tlieir authority — limits which 
could ultimately only be defined and preserved through, 
the uncertain process of judicial interpretation in Court-s 
of Law. I say nothing of the extreme difficulty of con- 
stituting a tribunal fit to judge of the validity of such 
acts, or the certainty that its decisions would soon be felt 
as far greater hardships than the refusal of the Crown, 
through its ministers, to allow an act, which refusal fur- 
ther consideration may at all times change or modify. 

28. If, indeed, this power of the crown were complained 
of, as practically a grievance, the representations of the 
council would have great additional weight ; but no such 
complaint appears t-o be made, nor do I see how it could 
be. From the information afforded by the records of this 
office, it seems that not more than seven acts of the 
legislature of Xew South "Wales have been disallowed 
since the commencement of the representative institu-'-ions ; 
and about the same number returned for the insertion of 
amendments before her Majesty's confirmation could 
be given ; and of the trifling number thus interfered with 
(nearly all in the first three sessions when the experiment 
was new,) several were obviously such acts as the local 
legislature, under the proposed division of subjects, which 
I have above adverted to, would have had no right to 
pass at all, 

29. On the other hand a very slight examination of the 
acts, more than two hundred in number, which have re- 
ceived the Royal confirmation, will probably show that 
many of them would have been, either wholly or partially, 
in excess of like powers of the Legislature, and absolutely 
void, if such a division of authorities had existed. And 
this shows the practical convenience of the law as it now 
stands : — for the Council of Xew South Wales has legis- 
lated, and will continue to legislate, without hindrance, on 
many subjects, either of Imperial cognizp.nce or touching 
the Prerogative, to the great advantage of the community, 
because the interests of the Crown and the emp^i-e are 
sufficiently guarded by the power of disallowance pos- 
sessed by the Crown, rarely as it is found necessary to 
exercise it, 

80. I have thus explained to you the views of her 
Majesty's Government on all the principal heads of the 
Declai'ation of the late Legislative Council ; and I trust 
that, however this explanation may be received by those 
who, as members of that body, adopted the Declaration, 
their constituents will be more disposed to weigh the 



APPENDIX. 



403 



considerations here advanced, and to endeavour, to the 
best of their power, to mitigate the opposition of opinions, 
and conciliate jarring interests, than to adopt, without 
demur, the sweeping conclusions which that Declaration 
advocates. At all events, I feel certain that, on refiection, 
tliey will acquit her Majesty's government of any intention 
to inflict on them a system of misrule and oppression. 
We have had the interest of the local community and of 
the Empire, which, rightly considered, are the same, 
solely in view ; and to attribute to us other motives^ 
would be as unjust, as it would be, on my part, to impute 
the language of this declaration, because I do not agree in 
it, to a spirit of faction or resentment. Whatever may 
be the censure in v/hich the late Council may have thought 
fit to indulge towards myself, I cannot be guilty of such, 
injustice towards them. Amidst the deep satisfaction with 
which I have watched, of late years the extraordinary pro- 
gress of New South Wales, in nearly all that constitutes 
the social and material welfare of a community, I have 
never ceased to appreciate the manner in which its Legis- 
lature has contributed to that advance, by the zealous and 
constant discharge of its duty to its constituents. And it 
is my sincere hope, that the now separate Legislatures, 
using with their best abilities the powers which the act 
now under discussion has conferred on them, will follow 
in that career of improvement which their predecessors 
have marked out for them. 

I have the honour to be, Sir, 
Your most obedient, humble servant, 

GEEY. 

Governor Sir Charles Fitz Roy, ko. 

The following report of proceedings in the Sydney 
Legislative Council, extracted from the Sydney 
Empire^ will prove interesting: — ■ 

The Council assembled the 8th June, a chief part of the 
business of the session being to vote the estimates for the 
remaining part of this year, and for 1853. Mr. Wentworth 
gave notice at the end of June that on a certain day when 
it was believed the estimates would be brought forward, 
he would move a call of the House ; his intentions being 
thus, contingently, to secure a full attendance of members 
for due deliberation on another motion before the esti- 
mates should be brought on ; and he intimated what th© 



404 



AUSTRALASIA. 



nature of the latter motion would be. This mode of 
actiuu, provoked by the long course of supercilious conduct 
on the part of the Colonial-office in regard to the often 
urged claims of the colonists, was stimulated to determi- 
nation by the last despatch, of Earl Grey in reference to a 
remonstrance sent to him by the late Legislative Council 
at its last sitting. A similar declaration of grievances had 
been voted by the present council at its session in Decem- 
ber last, and to this a final reply has yet to be received. 
There being both hopes and fears concerning the course 
which the new Secretary for the Colonies might deem it 
proper to pursue, and many misgivings as to the mode in 
which the local government might secretly act, whether 
to prejudice, or entirely to neutralise, the complaints of the 
Council, Mr. Wentworih, and those with him, determined 
to bring the matter to an issue. The estimates had to 
wait for the passing of the new Tariff Bill. This being 
disposed of, the statements were laid on the table and 
ordered to be printed on AYednesday, August 11 ; and the 
day appointed for the consideration of them was that day 
week, August IS. The day having arrived, the call of the 
House was foregone, as most of the members were present, 
but the motion intended was substantially persisted in, 
and was to the effect that his Excellency should be re- 
quested to prorogue the Council to the 5th of next Decem- 
ber, in order to give full time for a reply to the last decla- 
ration of grievances and its accompanying petition to her 
Majesty, to be received; and that the estimates be deferred 
to that time. The motion was lost by 2 S to IT, 16 nominees 
voiing against it ; it was lost, however, with many warnings 
to the members of the government respecting the difficulties 
they had brought upon themselves at every prospective 
step by their resistance. The estimates then stood over 
for the following Wednesday, August 25 ; but before this 
was ordered, Mr. Morriss moved, ''that the question be 
amended, by adding at the end thereof the words, ' And 
that it be an instruction to the committee not to vot^ any 
increase to any salary on the supplementary estimates for 
1852, until the whole of the gold revenue be placed at the 
disposal of this council.' " On the day of the order, this 
motion was by consent of the House withdrawn, and 
another amendment was moved by lMi\ Wentworth, of 
which he had given notice, as follows : — ''But before 
going into committee upon such estimates, this House 
feels it to be an imperative duty to record its deliberate 
determination not to consider any future estimates until 



APPENDIX. 



405 



an intimation be received that the grievances complaiDed 
of in the petition to her Most Gracious Majesty, adopted 
by this House on the 5th December, 1852, v^ill be favour- 
ably considered, with a view to their being completely 
redressed." This motion was carried by a majority of 
1 — 24 to 23 — three nominees voting for it. It was then 
again found necessary to postpone the motion for going 
into the estimates, to Wednesday, September 1. On the 
arrival of that day new questions arose. While in com- 
mittee, the gold revenue, its management, and the expenses 
to be charged on it came under review, and a spirited de- 
bate issued in the further postponement of the business 
for a week. 

This was the state of affairs on the day after the sailing 
of the Chusan. It will be seen that the resistance to the 
government had all along been on constitutional points, 
and that though there had beeu a defeat in point of num- 
bers on the first motion for an immediate suspension of the 
estimates, there was a victory on the second, in regard to 
the estimates of next year, if the hope were not held out 
by government of conciliatory arrangements before they 
were called for. This victory was augmented in its effect, 
when in the attempt to go on with the committee, the 
conduct of the government, and the expense incuired re- 
garding the military, came up for consideration. There is 
every reason to believe that the estimates would have 
been finally obstructed if affairs had not taken a most 
unexpected turn in favour of the constitutional party. 
The struggle has thus been wholly for constitutional rights 
on behalf of the colony ; and it has been collateral and 
parallel, though not necessarily connected, v/ith the pre- 
paration, by a select committee, of a bill for a new consti- 
tution. 

On Wednesday, September 8, when the motion was again 
made to go into committee on the estimates, a strenuous 
argument was entered iDto by Messrs. Cowper, Lamb, 
Campbell, and Wentworth, to show that it was impossible 
to goion with these matters in the present embarrassed 
state of public questions ; and the honourable ?md learned 
member for Sydney finished by moving liis aoiendment, 
to the effect, that in substance the Right Honourable Earl 
Grey had, in a despatch of date 17th October, 1851, autho- 
rized the local government to X)lace the gold revenue at 
the disposal of the local legislature, which it was necessary 
to have done in order to make the public business, for 
which the council was responsible, in any way practicable, 



406 



AUSTRALASIA. 



and that an address should be sent to his Excellency to 
this effect, the estimates being meanvmile suspended. 
Hence arose another adjournment, moved by one of the 
officers of government, till Wednesday, 15th September; 
and both parties seemed now to be preparing for a final 
conflict upon these points of right. 

It was manifest that during this whole contention, the 
cause of patriotism, and the opposition to arbitrary govern- 
ment, were gaining strength ; several of those who had 
opposed the contingent motion having now become avowed 
advocates of the public rights, and even nominees were 
among them. The progress of our legislators in this direc- 
tion must now be regarded as highly encouraging to all 
friends of justice and good government. Even the mem- 
bers of government have often enunciated sentiments in- 
dicative of growing enlightenment on the political rights 
and necessities of the community. 

The following day, by the steamer AusfralioM, the 
despatch of Sir John Pakington arrived, directing the 
gold revenue to be placed wholly at the disposal of 
the legislative council. The government lost no time 
in sending this despatch to the House, and it was 
received with loud cheers. The debate standing over 
for the last Wednesday was now easily disposed of. The 
amendment was withdrawn. On one point only the mem- 
bers who were to have jjressed that amendment reserved 
themselves, and that was the military question. The 
expenses incurred by this measure, and the arbitrary mode 
in which the expense had been incurred, as well as the 
danger of allowing troops to be introduced without the 
concuiTcnce of the local legislature, are all points to be 
debated when the proper time ai-rives for that branch of 
supply to be considered. 

There are several measures of imporiance unfinished or 
impending. Among these is the Postage Amendment 
Bill, which has passed through committee once, and must 
receive additional touches. A police measure of the go- 
vernment has been referred to a select committee. • The 
two matters in contemplation, which involve the most 
serious cons?quences, are the new modelling of the consti- 
tution, and the revision of the Marriage and Registration 
Laws. A select committee has nearly prepared a bill for 
the constitution, which is to be laid before the House next 
week. Its present stat*e is not divulged, some alterations 
having probably been made in it since it was drawn up. 
It is hoped that this bill will be equitable in its provisions, 



APPENDIX. 



40T 



and so harmonious with itself, as to be a model for the 
sister colonies to adopt. It is also earnestly hoped that 
the most ready disposition will be shown by the Imperial 
Government and Parliament to the just desires of the 
colonists, who have now acquired an adult condition, and 
a full right of self-government. The select committee 
which has been sitting on the marriage question have 
finished their evidence, but in what state of forwardness 
their labours are beyond that is not publicly known. 

On the whole, the present moment must be regarded^, 
politically, as of surpassing importance to New South 
Wales, and, through her, to the surrounding provinces. 
The gold discoveries have brought a crisis which had been 
long in gestation, and which can scarcely fail to produc© 
issues commensurate with all futurity. The establishment 
of a political status for this colony, on sound principles, at 
the very time when immigration is swelling beyond danger 
of suppression, is an era to this whole hemisphere, and even 
to the whole world. 



STATISTICAL RETURNS OF NEW- 
SOUTH V7ALES. 

The colony of New South Wales has long been 
indebted to the Honourable Colonial Secretary for 
the Statistical Returns which he has for many 
years back been in the habit of annually laying 
before the legislature. The accuracy of these re- 
turns — the care used in their compilation — and the 
skill displayed in their methodical arrangement, 
have deserved and commanded the gratitude of 
those whose business, or whose interest, or whose 
study it is to watch the progress of the colony, 
and to provide from the experierice of the past the 
necessary provision for the future. 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Figures, after all, are the safest foundation for the 
measures of the legislature, and the instruction of 
the journalist. And it is to be regretted that 
these returns, in their complete shape, have not 
liad a more widely extended circulation than they 
have hitherto enjoyed. 

With very few isolated exceptions, they are 
the only statistical documents of authority from 
which the social and material progress of the colony 
can be gathered ; and it is to be traced to the w^ant 
of such information as these returns afford being 
more generally diffused, that we have had occasion 
to find to our cost how little the true position of 
this great dependency of the British Crown has 
been understood and appreciated. Even the 
temptations offered by our gold fields have been 
resisted, until the interest they excited on the 
minds of the European world induced journalists 
and pamphleteers, lecturers and authors, to make 
these remote provinces of the empire the subject of 
their lucubrations and the theme of their discourses. 
But in the information thus imparted a good deal 
of quackery and deception has mingled — partly, 
no doubt, from design, but to a very considerable 
extent from the want of correct knowledge of the 
subject by those who professed to impart it. 

To furnish accurate information, then, in a 
crisis like the present, is of the highest importance, 
and therefore these returns come before us at a 
most opportune moment ; and great as has been 
the credit due to Mr. Thomson in former years for 
the accomplishment of his official task in preparing 
these returns, the set now before us merits more 
than our usual acknowledgments. 

In the material, the extent, and the arrangement 
of these valuable documents, a just appreciation of 
the increasing necessity for information is evinced, 



APPENDIX 



409 



and almost every subject which would offer itself 
to the intending emigrants, or to studious men 
wishing to make themselves masters of the state of 
this colony, is explained and illustrated by figures 
arranged with the most lucid accuracy. 

The statistics before us, although not specifi- 
cally so divided, may be classed in three depart- 
ments — the statistics of production, the statistics of 
commerce, and the statistics of society. 

In the first place are included agriculture, vine- 
yards, live stock, taHow and lard, wool and oil ; in 
the second class, mills, manufactories and manu- 
factures, imports, exports, shipping, auction sales, 
land sales, and coin ; in the third class, population, 
emigration, births, marriages, deaths, schools, lu- 
natic asylums, criminal convictions, criminals exe- 
cuted, litigation, mortgages on land, wool and live 
stock, revenue expenditure, post offices, &c., prices 
of provisions and clothing, and rates of wages. 

These returns extend from the year 1837, and 
the statistics are confined to New South Wales 
proper only. 

It is our intention to go into such analysis of 
these returns as our space will permit, in order as 
far as can be to supply the want of the returns 
themselves to the student or statist, and to make 
the information they afford available in a more 
popular form for the instruction of the general 
reader. 

The basis of these returns is of course popula- 
tion. The extent of production, of commerce, and 
of soci'ety, the capabiHties of the c(dlony, its soil 
and climate, can only be judged of in reference to 
the number and character of the people. 

Under the head of Population," then we fiv.iX 
by tb-e Census taken on the Jst of March, 1851. it 
consisted of 108,691 males, and 81,^60 females, 

T 



410 



AUSTRALASIA. 



making a total of 189,951. The increase to the 
31st of December, 1851, had been 9,043 males, and 
5,243 females. The increase in the males arose 
from immigration, 5,799 ; from births, 3,244. In 
the females, from immigration, 2,091 ; from births, 
3,152, The decrease to the 31st of December, 
was, 4,702 males, and 2,367 females. The de- 
crease in the males arose from deaths, 1,344; de- 
parture from the colony, 3,358 ; and in the females, 
from deaths, 823 ; and from departures, 1,544. 
The total increase was 14,286 ; the total decrease, 
7,069, leaving the net increase during the three- 
quarters of the year, 7,217, vizr^ — by births, 
2,229 ; by immigration, 2,968. The increase by 
births being a fraction more than two per cent. ; 
and by immigration about one and a quarter per 
cent. The number of marriages in the year 1851, 
was 1,915, and they were solemnized as follows : — 



Church of England , 
Scotland 

AVesleyan 

Independents 

Baptist 

Church of Rome 
Jews' Synagogues 



. 765 
426 

. 100 
8 
4 

605 
7 



It is an interesting fact, and tells well for the 

social progression 'of the colony, that since the 
year 1837, the returns show, almost without an 
exception, an increase in the births, and a decrease 
in the deaths over and above the proportionate in- 
crease of population. 

The statistics relative to the increase of popula- 
tion, by immigration, are very interesting and 
Toluminous ; but we are obliged to content our- 
selves by abstracting a few of the most important 
facts. We find that the whole number of immi- 



APPENDIX. 



411 



grants, introduced into the colony, during the 
twenty years, at the public expense, was. in 



1832 ... 792 


1839 .. 


. 7,852 


1846 . 


. mi 


1833 1,253 


1840 .. 


. 5,216 


1847 . 


NiL 


3834 ... 484 


1841 .. 


. 12,188 


1848 . 


. 4,376 


1835 ... 545 


1842 .. 


. 5,071 


1849 . 


. 8,309 


1836 ... 808 


1843 . 


Nil. 


1850 . 


. 4,678 


1837 ... 2,664 


1844 .. 


. 2,726 


1851 . 


. 1,846 


1838 ... 6,102 


1845 .. 


497 







Making the total number of immigrants in- 
troduced during the twenty years at the 

public expense . . . 64,807 

These consisted of, adults, male . , 21,653 

,, female . 25,595 

And of children, under 14 years of age . 17,559 

The total cost to the colony for this im- 
migration was . . . £1,134,511 15 



In 1832 the cost per head was 
" 1833 

" 1834 " 

1835 " 

" 1836 " 

" 1837 " 

" 1838 " 
" 1839 
" 1840 

" 1842 

1844 " 

" 1845 " 



6 13 8 

10 16 10 

10 9 7 

18 0 9 

16 4 6 

17 13 10 
16 18 11 

18 17 6 
22 12 5 

0 2 



17 
16 
16 
19 



The averages for the remaining years are n^t 
given, but we believe they have been about £]5, 
per head. The whole of this expenditure has been 
borne out of the territorial revenue of the colony, 
although it has been found necessary to anticipate 
that revenue by borrowing upon its security. The 
debentures issued by the government for this pur- 
pose amount in all to £836,800. ; and the net pro- 
ceeds realised by these debentures w^as £338,286. 



412 



AUSTRALASIA. 



15s. Id. The amount of debentures winch has 
been paid off was £149,700.; and the amount 
outstanding on the 3ist of December, 1851, was 
£187,100. The interest paid on debentures has 
been £33,786. 14s. Id. 

We now come to Education, and we find there 
were in the colony, in 



1840 
1841 
1842 
1843 
1844 
1845 
1846 
1847 
1848 
1849 
1850 
1851 



Schools 

159 
192 
232 
279 
313 
327 
388 
376 
382 
444 
493 
423 



Male 
Scholars, 

4,639 
4,935 
5,698 
6,286 
6,814 
7,813 
8,613 
9,848 
10,267 
10,721 
11,214 
11,118 



Female 
Scholars. 

3,935 
4,124 
4,635 
5,103 
6,776 
6,641 
7,650 
8,752 
8,722 
9,250 
10,170 
10,002 



Total. 

8,574 
9,059 
10,333 
11,389 
12,590 
14,454 
16,263 
18,600 
18,989 
19,971 
21,384 
21,120 



The schools, in the year 1851, consisted of the 
Protestant and Roman Catholic Orphan Schools, 
with 345 scholars, maintained by government at 
an expense of £5,212. 3s. lid. The Church of 
England Denominational Schools, with 4,998 
scholars, receiving .£5,212. 5s. 3d., from govern- 
ment, and paying £2,324. 2s. 7d., by voluntary 
cbntributions. The Wesleyan Schools with 891 
scholars, receiving £588. 9s. 2d. from the govern- 
ment, and £665. lis. 2d. from voluntary contri- 
butions. The Roman Catholic Schools, with 
3,310 scholars, receiving £2,576. 15s. 4d. from 
the government, and £985. 17s. Id. from volun- 
tary contributions. The National Schools, con- 
taining 2,861 scholars, receiving from government 
£6,766. 10s. Sd., and £1,179 17s. 3d. from volun- 



APPENDIX. 



413 



tary contributions. — Private schools consisting of 
227 in number, containing 6,721 scholars. 

The next chapter in the colonial statistics is a 
very painful one — one, we fear, that is scarcely 
equalled in its mournful details by the experience 
of any other British colony. It is a return of the 
lunatics in the colony. The first establishment 
mentioned is that at Tarban Creek. 



In 1851 there were received into the asylum, males 50 
„ females 35 

Of whom were cured, males . . .18 

,, „ females . . 14 

Improved, males . , . . 9 

„ „ females . . . 18 

„ Died, males . . . . .14 

„ „ females .... 4 

On the 31st of December, 1851, there remained in 

the asylum, (supposed to be curable, males 42 
„ „ females . 24 

Supposed to be incurable, males . .25 

„ females . . 27 

Total in the asylum . . . .118 

In the establishment at Parramatta, for free 
lunatics, there were in the same year (1831) 

Admitted, males . . , . .8 

„ females . . . 17 

Of whom were cured, males . ... 3 

„ females ... 3 

On the 31st of December, 1851, there remained in 

the establishment, supposed curable, males 5 

„ „ females . 6 

„ „ incurable, males 51 

„ „ ,, females 50 

Total in the establishment . . .112 



In the Convict Lunatic and Invalid Establish- 



414 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ment at Parramatta (the invalids being for the 
most part helpless and imbecile) there were 



Supposed to be curable, males 
„ females 
„ incurable, males 

„ females 

Total number in the establishment 



5 

2 
95 
20 

122 



The total number of lunatics in the asylums of the 
county is 352, or about 1 in every 550 persons. 

The return of the convictions in the criminal 
courts of the colony is one of a much more agree- 
able nature. The convictions were, in 













Total 






Felony. 




Misdemeanour. 


Convicted. 


1839 




.. 741 




... 125 ... 


... 866 


1840 




.. 652 




... 149 


... 801 


1841 




.. 563 




78 ... 


... 641 


1842 




.. 542 




94 ... 


... 636 


1843 




.. 523 




76 ... 


... 599 


1844 




..- 488 




78 ... 


... 566 


1845 




.. 442 




78 ... 


... 520 


1846 




463 




... 115 ... 


... 578 


1847 




.. 396 




85 ... 


.. 481 


1848 




.. 360 




85 ... 


... 485 


1849 




.. 437 




97 ... 


... 534 


1850 




. 451 




... 104 ... 


... 555 


1851 




. 461 




.. 113 ... 


... 574 


Thus the total convictions 


in 1839 were 866, while 


in 1851, with a population nearly double, they 


were 


reduce 


d to 574 








Th 


e return of criminals executed shows similar 


satisfactory results. 


The number executed in 


1837 


was 12 


1841 was 15 


1845 was 3 


1849 was 4 


1838 


„ 19 


1842 „ 


9 


1846 „ 1 


1850 „ 4 


1839 


„ 22 


1843 „ 


9 


1847 „ 2 


1851 ., 2 


1840 


„ 8 


1844 „ 


8 


1848 „ 4 





Scarcely less indicative of the progressive mo- 



APPENDIX. 



415 



rality and good sense of the colony is the Return 
entitled Litigation," from which it appears that 
lawsuits in our civil courts have been reduced to 
about one-fourth of what they were in former 
years. There were in 



1837 . 


.459 cases 


1842 .. 


. 1,069 


cases 


1847 . 


..135 cases 


1838 . 


.570 „ 


1843 .. 


. 852 




1848 . 


.127 „ 


1839 . 


.316 „ 


1844 


. 288 


}> 


1849 . 


.101 „ 


1840 . 


555 „ 


1845 .. 


. 851 




1850 . 


. 89 „ 


1841 . 


.884 „ 


1846 


. 169 









In 1851 there were three cases tried by common 
juries, and three by special juries ; 92 defended 
cases, tried by juries of four; and 21 undefended 
cases : making a total of 119. 

There are two Returns — the first — of Mortgages 
on Land registered in the colony of New South 
"Wales, from the year 1837 to the year 1851. 
The second, a Return of Preferable Liens on Wool 
and of Mortgages on Live Stock, which are useful 
as indicating the position of property of this kind 
in the colony. 

The number of Mortgages on Land, in 









£ s. 


d. 


1837 


was 


286, amounting to 


231,014 4 


8 


1838 


>? 


256, 


248,891 16 


4 


1839 


>■> 


383, „ 


348,818 4 


10 


1840 




459, 


514,741 0 


4 


1841 


}i 


709, 


. 1,098,714 14 


7 


1842 


>f 


625, 


824,412 10 


0 


1843 


?> 


581, 


, 1,055,580 19 


6 


1844 


» 


494, 


299,818 2 


0 


1845 


ii 


318, 


272,282 10 


5 


1846 


)t 


308, 


170,374 11 


4 


1847 


If 


320, . 


180,544 10 


6 


1848 


)> 


307, „ 
376, 


202,646 10 


7 


1849 


J) 


198,479 11 


1 


1850 


)» 


310, 


142,022 10 


6 


1851 


)f 


359, 


144,402 12 


8 



This return is interesting, inasmuch as it shows 



416 



AUSTRALASIA, 



how, in the earlier years of the colony, the landed 
possessions of individuals formed but a very falla- 
cious indication of the real wealth of the possessor. 
Persons bought large estates and tracts of land, 
without the means of paying for them, much less 
of making them productive of revenue or e^en of 
the interest payable on these mortgages, and we 
consequently see them growling rapidly until the 
years 1841, 1842, and 1843. The evil hour was 
put off till the latest moment, but the insolvencies 
of those years swept them off like the blast of the 
desert. In the latter of these years the mortgages 
amounted to £1,055,580. 19s. 6d. ; in 1844 they 
v/ere reduced to .£299,818. 2s. Since that period 
they have gradually decreased, and last year they 
amounted only to £144,402. 12s. 8d., a proof that 
the real property of the colony at the present time 
is distributed more generally, and, resting on a 
firmer basis, is in a far more healthy state, than 
when the very hollo wness of its tenure gave it a 
glittering but deceptive value. 

The second of these returns, viz., the Preferable 
Liens on Wool, and the Mortgages on Live Stock, 
is also interesting, from the local peculiarity which 
attaches to them. These mortgages originated in 
an Act of the Colonial Legislature, which was 
passed to meet certain necessities of the wool- 
farmers and graziers, and which, although at first 
disallowed by the Imperial Government as a no- 
velty in legislation, ha^ since been repeatedly re- 
enacted, and has been found to work very benefi- 
cially. The object was to enable proprietors of 
flocks to give preferable liens on their crops of 
wool, from season to season, and to make sheep 
and cattle valid mortgage securities, without deli- 
very to the mortgagee. In 1843, the year in 
which this Bill first passed, 



APPENDIX. 



417 







Liens, 


Sheep. 




£. s. 


d. 




l/XiCi. C/ wcxc 


54 on 318,739, 


for 


30,664 18 
67^,733 1 


5 


In 1 844 


J? 


idy „ 


OO t ,Uit 1 J 


)} 


10 


1845, 


» 


125 „ 


657,989, 


?> 


55,865 18 


7 


1846,' 




U9 „ 


813,951, 




71,351 5 


0 


1847, 


>» 


199 „ 


1,095,402, 




107,447 16 


10 


1848, 


J> 


240 „ 


8,378,180, 




108,892 2 


11 


1849, 


?> 


211 „ 


1,154,468, 


J) 


84,692 18 


3 


1850, 


;j 


187 „ 


1,148,344, 


j> 


82,731 0 


0 


1851, 


?7 


192 „ 


1,069,981, 


>? 


85,110 2 


2 



The number of Mortgages on Live Stock, in 



Mortgages. Sheep. 


Cattle. 


Horsese 


Amount. 




1843 


96 


397,995 


44,430 


903 


178,567 6 


10 


1844 


226 


694,381 


81,679 


2,158 


241,727 6 


11 


1845 


152 


464,713 


49,139 


1,568 
1,070 


132,355 7 


7 


1846 


146 


491,518 


42,870 


150,733 0 


8 


1847 


168 


623,257 


45,578 


1,110 


137,856 15 


1 


1848 


205 


1,118,782 


84,411 


2,056 
1,747 


219,756 15 


8 


1849 


213 


1,132,466 


72,892 


161,533 5 


11 


1850 


163 


639,765 
763,180 


54,481 


770 


118,987 0 


1 


1851 


158 


75,668 


1,137 


193,126 2 


6 



In the returns we have thus summarized, thte 
Dumber of the population is stated, and to some 
extent its social and moral character is indicated. 
We m)w proceed to examine the productive re- 
turns of the colony ; and in proportion to the value 
of the productions, in proportion to the population 
of the country, the circumstances of its recent 
establishment, and it« remoteness from European 
civilization^ must its capabilities and richness be 
computed. 

The first return is entitled Agriculture, showing 
the quantity of land in cultivation in the colony of 
New South Wales, and the produce of the same, 
from the years 1837 to 1851 inclusive, it is un- 
necessary that we should enter into tlie whole of 
the details during the entire period, but it is suf- 
T 2 



418 



AUSTRALASIA. 



fieient to say the increase in the production has 
been steadily progressive. 

The number of Acres, in Crop, in 



1837 was 92,125 

1838 92,763 

1839 „ 94,882 

1840 „ 122,906 

1841 „ 110,249 



1842 was 118,755 

1843 „ 133,185 

1844 „ 128,406 

1845 „ 138,237 

1846 „ 151,034 



1847 was 128,598 

1848 „ 123,499 

1849 „ 135,806 

1850 „ 144,647 

1851 „ 152,057 



Land under Produce, was cropped as follows: — In 

1841, Wheat, 82,110 acres, producing 1,407,465 bushs. 

Maize, 25,017 „ 707,053 „ 

Barley, 6,725 „ No return 

Oats, 2,470 „ 49,069 bush's. 

Rye, 245 „ 4,891 „ 

Mullet, 54 „ 731 „ 

Potatoes, 4,079 „ 13,644 tons. 

Tobacco, 731 „ 12,530 cwt. 

Hay, 30,625 „ 36,605 tons. 

Of course the crops of various sorts vary accord- 
ing to the season ; but with the exception of hay 
and maize, in which there is a very small decrease 
on that of some former years, the crops were larger 
last year than they have ever been known before. 

In order to show how far the agricultural pro- 
duction of the colony is equivalent to the consump- 
tion of the country, we may say that in 1851, the 
import of bread stuffs, and potatoes, was in esti- 
mated value £66,882, while that of the exports of 
the same articles was £22,856. But it is to be 
taken into consideration that this very large im,port 
originated to a large extent in the probable demand 
to arise from the gold discoveries, as in the pre- 
vious year, 1850 the import of grain and potatoes 
was only valued at £16,939 ; while the exports 
were valued at £21,454. 

The next return is one showing the number of 
acres of land planted with the grape vine, and the 



APPENDIXo 



quantity of wine or brandy made from the produce. 
The number of Acres planted in 









Wine 


Brandy 




Acres. 




Gallons. 


Gallonse 


io4d, was 


508 


producing 


33,915 


751 


1844 


556 




^0 'S66 


1 018 


1845, 


611 


ft 


54,996 


l',433 


1846, 


749 


yi 


52,337 


1,38S 




899 


?> 


54,035 


1,402 


1848, 


887 


?> 


97,300 


1,163 


1849, 


963 




95,843 


1,2m 


1850, 


1,069| 




111,085 


1,985 


1851, 


l,060i 


» 


84,843 


1,641 



In reference to this return, we may state that 
the wine imported in the year 1851 comprised 
273,856 gallons, the estimated value of which was 
.£38,881 ; while the export was — colonial wine^ 
3,050 gallons, valued at £827 ; foreign wine^ 
28,726 gallons, valued at £4,833. 

The next return is that of live stock, and this 
return extends from 1843 to 1851 inclusive. 











Horned 












Horses. 


Cattle 


Pigs, 


Sheep, 


In 1843 there were 55,739 


850,160 


54,607 


3,452,539 




1844, 




64,093 


971,559 


52,196 


3,743,732 




1845, 


?> 


73,014 


116,420 


56,022 
39,793 


4,409,50i 




1846, 


yy 


76,726 


1,140,297 


4,903,819 




1847, 


yy 


90,118 


1,270,706 


57,395 


5,673,26S 


3> 


1848, 


yy 


97,400 


1,366,164 


65,216 


6,530,542 


?J 


1849, 


yy 


105,126 


1,463,651 


52,902 


6,784,494 




1850, 


>• 


ni,458 


1,374,968 


52,371 


7,092,209 




1851, 




116,397 


1,375,257 


65,510 


7,396,895 



From this return it will be seen that on the 31sfc 
'December, 1851, there was in the proportion of 6| 
horned cattle, and ^^7 sheep, to every man, woman^ 
or child in the colony ; 2 horses to every three 
individuals, and 1 pig to every three individuals. 
A proportionate wealth in stock of this description 
not to be equalled we believe in any community m 
the world, except, perhaps, in the sister colony 
Yictoria. 



420 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Of the live stock of the colony, 81,083 horses, 
451,263 horned cattle, 59,429 pigs, and 2,263,386 
sheep belong to the settled districts • while 34,314 
horses, 923,994 horned cattle, 6,081 pigs, and 
5,133,509 sheep belong to the districts beyond the 
boundaries of location. The estimated value of 
the live stock exported during the year 1851 was 
£23,645 ; while the value of the imported stock 
was only £7,510. 

Connected with this last return, and arising out 
of it, is the return of the production of tallow, 
lard, and wool. 

There were slaughtered in 





Sheep. 


Cattle. 


1844 


127,280 and 16,891 


1845 


85,377 „ 


36,361 


1846 


33,538 „ 


9,438 


1847 


128,741 „ 


32,012 


1848 


165,701 „ 


33,097 


1849 


393,071 „ 


35,744 


1850 


292,416 „ 


60,385 


1851 


262,845 „ 


42,231 



producing 



Tallow. 

28,901 cwts. 
46,854 
16,802 
58,963 
60,842 
85,675 
128,330 
88,145 



The production of wool we cannot determine so 
precisely, as we have only a return of the quantity 
exported, and of the cloth made in the colony. 
The quantity of wool produced, and cloth manu- 
factured wa?, in 





Wool. 


WoUen cloth. 


No. of 




lbs. 


Yards, 


Blankets. 


1844 


9,215,944 


No return 


No return 


1845 


10.522,921 


>> 




1846 


10,072,570 


175'088 




1847 


12,169,684 


424 


1848 


12,445,048 


164,769 


248 


1849 


13,396,525 


180,197 


48 


1850 


14,270,622 


190,791 


32 


1851 


15,268;473 


114,394 


no return. 



APPENDIX. 



421 



Another return connected closely with the re- 
turn of Live Stock, is the Heturn of the Export of 
Salt Meat. 



In 1844, this amounted to 





J? 


Mutton Hams 


3? 


?> 


Bacon ,, . 


»J 


j> 


Tongues . 


?> 


J? 


Preserved Meats, 


3> 


1845, 


Salt Meat 


yj 




Hams 


■)y 


>? 


Tongues . 


J? 




Preserved Meats 


J) 


1846, 


Salt Meat 


3J 




Hams . 


3> 




Tongues . 


5J 




Preserved Meats 


J> 


1847, 


Salt Meat . 


JJ 


» 


Hams 


5? 




Tongues . 


?? 


> J 


Preserved Meats 


?> 


1848, Salt Meat . 


?^ 




Hams 


?> 




Tongues . 


J» 




Preserved Meats 


?> 


1849, 


Salt Beef . 


?> 




Ha,ms 


?J 




Tongues . 






Preserved Meats 


3J 


1850, 


Salt Beef , 


9» 




Hamsi 


?> 


J? 


Tongues . 


?> 


1851, 


Preserved Meats 


( JV 


Salt Meat . 


j> 




Hams 


j> 




Tongues . 


j> 




Preserved Meats 



4,292 casks, 
10,056 
100 
150 

,258 lbs. 
1,142 casks. 

94 cwt. 

63 casks. 

12 packages. 
721 casks. 

30 cwt. 

127 casks. 
224 packages. 
4,345 casks. 
218 cwt. 
127 casks. 

12 packages. 
2,308 casks. 
145 cwt. 

84 casks, 

93 cases, 
192 ton 2 cwt. 
254 cwt. 
151 casks, 
370 cases, 
308 tons. 
141 cwt. 
218 casks« 
4,900 cases. 
221 tons 17 cwt, 
246 cwt. 

4J tons. 
765 cwt. 



We may add, in passing, that the import of salt 
meat, which, in 1837 to 1841 ranged in estimated 
value from £25,000 to £80,000 ; in 1849 was 
iei,061 ; in 1850, £1,649 ; in 1851, £3,951. 



422 



AUSTRALASIA. 



• 



RATES OF WAGES IN SYBI^EY, 



SEPTEMBER 18,. 1852. 

Per DSem. r. d. &, d. 

Stonemasons . . ^ . 8 0 to 8 6J 

Carpenters and Joiners . . 7 0,^90 

Bricklayers . . . . 8 0 „ 8 6 

Masons' and Bricklayers' Labourers 7 0 7 G 

Common spadesmen and other inferior 

building labourers . , 5 0 ,^ 6 0 

Plasterers . . . . 8 0 9 0 

Painters and Glaziere . . 8 6 9 0 

Foremen and overseers of buildings , 10 6 15 0 
Carters and Draymen . , 15 0 20 0 

Sawyers, 12s. per 100 feet, superficial — soft wood. 

[The earnings of hard wood sawyers can scarcely be 
estimated, they being mostly paid by the truck system.] 

Brickmakers, 18s. to 20s. per 1000, for the labour only 
of moulding, setting, and burning. 



These are the chief divisions of labour required on 
buildings ; and, as it is a most important department, a 
few remarks are needful. 

It must, in the first place, be observed, that the above 
rates do not determine the real value of the particular 
class of work, but simply what is paid for a particular 
class of labour. Most of the best artisans and labourers 
in the building department are at the gold fields ; and the 
above rates, which, to each trade or calling, are nearly 
uniform, are now paid to men, the great majority of 
whom are third or fourth-rate hands. It is stated by our 
leading architects and contractors, that barely one-third 
of the men now employed in Sydney are efiective, or 
fairly entitled to more than one-half of the wages demanded 
by them. 

We now proceed with the other departments of trade* 
in Sydney, (at the above date) : — 



APPENDIX. 



423 



Per Diem. 

Brassfounders 
Engineers and Millwrights 
Ironfounders 
Millers 
Shipwrights 
Tin-plate workers 
Watchmakers 
Whitesmiths « 
Blacksmiths 
Wheelwrights 

Coopers, piece-work, averaging 
Coach-builders 
Cabinet-makers 

[First-rate hands will only take piece^ 
work, at which they are now earn- 
ing from £4. is. to £5. 10s. per 
week,] 
Upholsterers , 
French polishers . 
Labourers on wharves 
Tailors, first-class 

Do. second-class . 

Do. third- class 
Butchers 
Bakers 

Cardeners (town) 
Compositors 
Pressmen 



8, 


</, 






d. 


9 


9 to 12 


0 


10 


0 


7? 


15 


0 


9 


6 


}> 


10 


0 


10 


0 


}) 
}} 


15 


0 


12 


6 


15 


0 


9 


0 


„ 


10 


0 


10 


6 


)) 


20 


0 


8 


0 


)i 


9 


0 


9 


0 


>} 
}> 


10 


0 


10 


6 


12 


0 


10 


6 


}} 


0 


0 


9 


0 


)) 


12 


3 


10 


0 


}} 


12 


0 



8 


6 


J) 


10 


0 


8 


6 


» 


9 


0 


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Both pressmen and compositors get Is. 6d. an hour 
overtime. On the morning papers most of the work is 
done by piece. The prices are, for Brevier, Is. 3d. per 
thousand ; for Nonpareil,. Is. 6d. per thousand. 

Porters to warerooms, £1. per week, with board and 
lodging. 

Shoemakers, piece-work, as follows : — 

Wellingtons, closing . .80 making 14 0 

Princes, do. . .56 do. 10 0 

Cossacks, do. . .30 do. 8 (> 

Strong kip, do. . . 1 0 do. 6 (> 

Shoes, closing and making . . 7 0 

Ladies' Shoemakers are not to be procured. 



424 



AUSTRALASIA, 



In the rural districts the following rates of wages are 
now given ; the great difficulty in procuring effective 
labourers in Sydney being still greater in the pastoral and 
agricultural districts. 

£ £ 

Shepherds, single men, per annum, with rations 25 to 85 
Do. married, do. do. 85 „ 42 

Stock-keepers, single men, per annum, with 

rations . . . . 25 „ 30 

Do. married, do. with 

rations, . . . . 35 „ 42 

Bullock-drivers, per annum, with rations . 39 „ 40 
Farm labourers, per annum, with rations . 26 „ 35 
Shearers, with rations, 3s. to 33. 9d. per score. 
Butchers, per annum, with rations and quarters 78 „ 120 
Gardeners, do. do. . 35 „ 42 

Hut-keepers, do. do. . 18 „ 24 

Ploughmen, do. do. . 30 „ 39 

House-servants, in town or country, per annum 26 52 

Females of good conduct obtain ready and remunerative 
employment in every department. First-rate needle-wo- 
men earn, at piece-work, from £1. 15s. to £2. 2s. per 
week. Ordinary sempstresses receive from 10s. to 15s. 
per week, at day work, and have all their meals provided 
for them. House-servai^s obtain from £14. to £30. per 
annum. 

This, then, is the state of the labour markel^in the 
towns and pastoral and agricultural districts of this gold 
producing land. — Sydney Morning Herald, Se]jt. 18, 1852. 



APPENDIX, 



425 



PRESENT CONDITION OF THE GOLD- 
FIELDS. 

The time which has elapsed since Mr. Hargraves 
announced that extensive auriferous regions existed 
in the colony has done much le.^s towards the de- 
velopement of the hidden golden treasures of this 
province of the island, than was at first anticipated. 
Not that the results of the gold- discoveries in 
Australia have been less remarkable on the whole,, 
for they have surpassed the most sanguine expec- 
tations, but that in consequence of the diversion of 
population and mining enterprise to the wealthy 
placers of^the sister colony, the diggings have here 
remained comparatively at a stand-still, while the 
developemeiit of the golden wealth of Victoria has 
proceeded at an extraordinary rate. In fact^ 
during the last twelve months, ever since the at- 
tractions of Mount Alexander began to tell on the 
mining population engaged at our diggings, we 
have made but little progress. With one or two 
exceptions, our present su[)plies of gold are derived 
from the very same localities whence they were 
received last year, the only dilBPerence being, that 
they are in diminished quantity. The only dig- 
gings opened up since tliat time, which have ma- 
terially affected the increase in our production of 
gold, are those of Tambaroura and the Hanging- 
Hock. Even these were known before that period, 
although their richness was not established, in 



426 



AUSTRALASIA. 



I 



July, 1851, parties were at work in the vicinity of 
Bald Hill, and a short time after at the Dirt 
Holes ; and about the same time gold had been 
found, although in small quantities, near tlie pre- 
sent diggings on the Peel. During the last twelve 
months, tlie Turon and the Braid wood diggings 
have retrogressed, partly in consequence of the in- 
cessant rains impeding, as they do, mining opera- 
tions in the beds of creeks and rivers, but chiefly 
on account of the migration of the population to 
the Victoria gold-fields. 

But although the full development of the auri- 
ferous deposits of any particular locality has been 
retarded, and the production of the precious metal 
by no means increased during this time, yet pros- 
pecting enterprise has never slumbered, and a 
vast number of new places has been added to the 
list of those where gold is known to exi^t, and 
where gold-digging is likely to form a remunera- 
tive pursuit. The attractions of other gold-fields 
have drawn away the great body of adventurers — 
those who had no other motive to attacli them to 
the gold-fields here than a desire of gain. The large 
proportion of gold-diggers left are persons who 
have got a permanent interest in the country — 
inhabitants of the small inland towns — where their 
families are resident, or settlers on farms in which 
all their property is invested. Tliese persons dis- 
tributed over the face of the country, of course find 
it more profitable and convenient to devote their 
spare time to working at diggings in the vicinity 
of their dwellings, and consequently are ever on 
the search for gold near home. There is hardly a 
shepherd's hut in the interior, where there is the 
slightest probability that the precious metal mav 
be found, which does not boast of a cradle and 



APPENDIX. 



42T 



other mining implements, devoted to use whenever 
opportunity offers. 

The consequence is that, possessed as we are of 
some half dozen gold fields, whose extraordinary 
richness, although by no means fully developed, 
has yet been satisfactorily demonstrated ; there are 
numerous localities throughout the colony where 
theoretical indications, and the brilliant success at- 
tending partial attempts at development, give the 
imagination ample scope for rioting in dazzling 
visions of a future cornucopia of go^*len grain ; 
although there is still uncertainty enough to fan 
the fever of excitement and suspense. 

The first locality which claims attention is Ophir, 
the parent diggings of the colony. Ophir may be 
regarded as belonging to what may be termed the 
Canoblas gold field. This mountain, w^hich is 
nearly a mile in height above the level of the sea, and 
is composed chiefly of trap rock, is the centre 
whence a considerable number of streams, includ- 
ing the Summerhill Creek, take their rise, and 
flowing through a country composed chiefly of 
schists and quartzites, are more or less auriferous. 
Gold has been found throughout the length of the 
Summerhill Creek, from its source at the Canoblas 
to its junction with the Macquarrie, but most abun- 
dantly at Ophir, and Frederick's Valley, where the 
Wentworth diggings are situated. The gold is 
chiefly of a nuggetty description, and has been 
found in lumps of three or f )ur pound's in weight. 
At the Wentworth diggings, very fine gold has 
been obtained in considerable quantities. The 
country about Opliir is very broken and rugged, 
and the deposit of gold lies, for the most part, in 
the bed of the creek, as the banks are too steep to 
allow of any extensive dry or bank diggings. 
Towards the Macquarrie the banks of the creek 



428 



AUSTRALASIA, 



become still more rocky and abrupt, and there is 
not much likelihood of any extensive deposit of 
gold having been formed. The bed of the creek, 
at Ophir, has never been sufficiently dry to allow 
of its being profitably w^orked since the first rains 
after the opening up of the diggings on Fitzroy 
Bar. The population has never been very great 
since that period, and at present does not nuniher 
over two or three hundred. The earnincrs at these 
diggings average from 10s. to 60s. per diem, and 
in some cases much more. There are many parties 
at w^ork in the vicinity of the Canoblas, and on 
creeks flowing from it. At the Tea Tree Creek 
and Brown's Creek, profitable diggings have been 
been opened, and the earnings are trom 10s. to 2(.'s. 
a day, but the number of persons engaged at these 
places is not large. The whole of the region sur- 
rounding this mountain, which is situated some 
forty or fifty miles to the westward of Bathurst, 
may be regarded as a gold field comparatively un- 
explored, which, when the return wave of popula- 
tion and enterprise shall have set in to the gold 
fields of this colony, will occupy no insignificant 
position. 

The Turon still claims the first position among 
the gold fields of the colony in point of richness 
and extent. Sofala, the township which has been 
formed at the richest locality on the Turon, is dis- 
tant about twenty-five miles north from Bathurst. 
Fifteen miles above Sofala remunerative diggings 
were opened at what is called the Gulf, and thence 
to the junction of the river with the Macquarrie, a 
distance of nearly forty miles, digging operations 
have been carried on with more or less success. 
The geological formation of the country is of schist, 
intersected by quartz veins of various thickness, 
but there are many other rocks present at different 



APPENDIX. 



429 



portions of the river. The mountains are lofty, 
but with rounded summits and gently sloping 
base», and the river flows for the greater part 
through a narrow valley between the ranges. The 
banks and slopes on the river side are seldom 
abrupt, and dry diggings consequently abound. 
The gold procured on the river itself is chiefly 
dust, generally of a very fine description, but coarse 
gold has been obtained in various places, and is 
abundant in the creeks and ravines opening into 
the river. Lumps weighing as much as seven 
pounds have been found. The yield of gold on 
the Turon has been in many instances most extra- 
ordinary. In several cases, from 80 to 100 ounces 
a day have been obtained by parties of three or 
four, for days together ; in numerous instances 
from twenty to fifty ounces a day have been pro- 
cured ; and from five to fifteen ounces were at one 
time a common yield. The gold has been obtained 
in equal quantities in the bed of the river, and on 
the banks and slopes in its vicinity. In the former 
case, the greatest depth to which it is necessary to 
go for gold is from four to ten or twelve feet, but 
the continual presence of water has rendered it 
generally a matter of difficulty, and often of im- 
possibility to get at the auriferous^ deposits. In 
the dry diggings the depths of the claims vary from 
the surface to forty or fifcy feet, and the largest 
deposits of gold are got in the pockets and crevices 
of the bed rock. In the river diggings, the useless 
surface soil is generally wliolly removed, but in 
the dry diggings, when a shaft has been sunk, the 
ground on the level of the gold deposit is tunnelled. 
The dry diggings on the banks of the Turon, are 
considered by many to be comparatively exhausted, 
but this is by no means the case in the opinion of 
more competent judges. As long as there was 



430 



AUSTRALASIA. 



a large population at tbe Turon, the spirit of enter- 
prise constantly developed new ground, and new 
discoveries only ceased when very few were left to 
contend for the honour and profit of making them. 
Recently rich dry diggings have been discovered 
on the slope of the hill leading to the township of 
Sofala, and at not more than a pistol-shot distance 
from the town. This ground has been constantly 
traversed by eager miners for many months, and now 
it is proved to abound in deposits of the precious 
metal, which hundreds have left its vicinit} to seek 
for at distant localities. The mining population of 
the Turon, numbered at one time certainly not less 
than 10,000, but at present the number of persons 
engaged in digging on the Turon and its tributaries 
does not exceed 1,200. The repeated disappoint- 
ments and losses sustained in consequence of the 
floods, w^hich have so frequently occurred at the 
Turon during the last ten or twelve months, and 
the inducements held out by other fields of enter- 
prise, sufiering less from the vicissitudes of the 
weather, have combined to cause the population of 
this district to dwindle to its present small amount. 
So rainy a season as has been experienced lately in 
this district, is a most uncommon occurrence, and 
there is every reason to expect that it will be suc- 
ceeded by dry w^eather, during which the riches of 
the Turon will be more fully developed. The 
average yield at these diggings, is from 15s. to £3. 
or <£4. a day, but the instances are numerous in 
which large sums are earned in a very short period. 
The labour required is great, whether in the bed or 
the dry diggings, as in the former the water h^s 
constantly to be contended with, and in the latter, 
conglomerate soil which has to be wrought through, 
is almost as hard as a rock. There is a vast field 
for mining enterprise at the Turon, both ou the 



APPENDIX. 



431 



river itself and on the table land in the vicinity, 
whence its tributaries take their rise. Many of 
these tributaries, Big Oakey and Little Oakey 
Creek especially, have yielded a large amount of 
gold. On the table land, where their source is, 
parties have been at work for months, making 
large earnings, and more extensive research would, 
undoubtedly, develope many rich deposits at this 
place. Along the Bathurst-road gold has been 
found, and at Wyagden Hill, mid-way between 
that town and the Turon, operations on a large 
scale, which promise to be successful, have been 
begun. There are miles in extent of this river, in 
which, although there is every likelihood that 
deposits of the precious metal will be found, no 
attempt has as yet been made to develope the pro- 
bable riches. The bed of the river alone, aurife- 
rous as it is throughout, not to speak of the creeks 
or the hills in the vicinity, will afford itn almost 
inexhaustible digging ground. 

The Braid wood diggings next claim attention. 
They are confined chiefly to Majors and Bell's 
Creeks, which flow over the table land, above the 
valley of Araluen. They are not more than ten 
or twelve miles distant from the town of Braid- 
w^ood. What is peculiar in these diggings is, the 
fact that they are situated to the eastward of the 
dividing range of mountains. These creeks before 
named, join the river Moruya, which flows into 
the sea on the east coast, between Bateman's Bay 
and Twofold Bay. Diggings have been opened 
in the valley of the Araluen, but it is not thought 
that this place will pay even when the weather 
becomes as favouraVjle as could be desired. Major s 
Creek, and its tributary. Bell's Creek, have amply 
repaid those engaged in mining operations on them, 
although the prevalence of water has very much 



432 



AUSTRALASIA. 



interfered, and still continues to interfere, with 
their effectual working. The country is not of so 
mountainous a description as the Turon, and from 
its general characteristics we are disposed to think 
that dry diggings are much more extensive there 
than is known or suspected. Slate and quartz 
abound in the vicinity, but the bed-rock is granite, 
and the ;^-old has been found chiefly in what is 
regarded as decomposed granite. The probability, 
however, is, that its intimate connection with this 
decomposed rock is a comparatively recent occur- 
rence, and that the granite is not to be regarded as 
the matrix. The prosperity of those diggings has 
been seriously retarded by the incessant rains which 
have fallen during the last several months, and the 
population has almost deserted them. At one 
time there must have been nearly 2,000 persons 
on Major's and Bell's Creeks, and at Araiuen ; 
but at present there are not, at most, more than 
500. The average earnings at those diggings ap- 
proximate to those at the Turon, and, as at the 
latter place, many instances of surprising good for- 
tune have occurred. At Mungarlow, some fifteen 
or twenty miles from Major s Creek, remunerative 
diggings have been opened, and several nuggets 
have been found weigliing up to 8 or 10 oz. At 
the Brjaidwood diggings the gold is generally fine, 
and it is reckoned to be very pure. 'Dry diggings 
have lately been opened on Major's Creek, in which 
many parties are procuring 4 or 5 oz. of gold a day. 
The comparative desertion of the Braid wood dig- 
gings has by no means been in consequence of the 
want of success at them. They have paid well, 
and as yet their riches have been only very par- 
tially developed. There is everything to warrant 
the conclusion that an extensive and rich gold-field 



APPEiNDJX. 



433 



exists io the yiciriity, of which, as yet, only de- 
tached portions have been brought to light. 

About thirty miles north of the Turon is the 
Meroo. The Meroo is a river somewhat resem- 
bling the Turon in its general features, and in its 
banks and bars large deposits of gold have been 
found. The geological character of the country is 
similar to that of the Turon. The diggings already 
opened here extend several miles along the river. 
The yield of gold is generally large, and the gold 
itself coarse, with occasional large nuggets. Several 
points on the Meroo have turned out uncommonly 
rich. The golden reputation of the Meroo itself, 
howevei*, is small in comparison to that of one of 
itjs tributary creeks, the Louisa, on whose banks 
such extraordinary masses of the precious metal 
have been found, and where the great nugget vein 
lies. The country about the Louisa is generally of 
a flat description, and the declivities of the creeks 
are mild. Mr. Green, assistant commissioner, in 
a report on the Western Gold Fields, has expressed 
his opinion that the auriferous ground available for 
dry diggings at this creek, extends for several miles 
to Campbell's Creek, and that on the table land, 
of which this forms a portion, 40,000 or 50,000 
miners could find profitable employment. Con- 
sidering that this table land includes the rich dig- 
gings at the Long Creek, the Dirt Hole, the Tam- 
baroura and other creeks, v^'e do not think that it 
is any exaggeration of tlje truth. At the Louisa, 
beautiful specimens of gold in the matrix are con- 
stantly procured, and nearly all the gold obtained 
here is coarse and not waterworn. Nuggets of 
large size have been discovered. The hundred 
weight every one is familiar with. Breuan's 27 lb. 
lump was found at the Louisa, as was also the 
largest waterworn nugget yet obtained, weighing 
u 



484 



ATSTRALASIA. 



157 ounces, besides immeroas other nuggets of less 
size, which it would be tedious to enumerate. Tl}e 
lieavy rains have greatly interfered with all the 
diggings from the Meroo to the Tur^n, putting a 
stop to further operations, and compelling the miner's 
to teeek other places. This has been the case at 
Long Creek, the Devil's Hole, Pyramul Creek, 
Nuggetty Gully, Married Man's Creek, the Dirt 
Holes, &G. The gold at these places is coarse, and 
the earnings are in many cases very large. Gene- 
rally speaking a man may make certain of securing 
20^. a day, if the weather is favourable, and lie 
sticks to his work. The number of diggers on the 
Meroo, the Louisa, and the other places just named, 
may be put down at 1,500. 

Between the Turon and the Pyramul, and pa- 
rallel to both, lies the Tambaroura Creek, which 
di.sembogues itself into the Macquarrie several miles 
below the junction of the Turon. This place has 
latelv taken an important position among tlie dig- 
gings for richness and extent, and bids fair to retain 
it. The diggings are situated chiefly on the table 
land, and the yield of gold, when the weather 
allows of operations being carried on, is very large. 
Many of the claims yield from two to twelve 
ounces a day. The gold is coarse, and lies at 
various depths from the surface. At Golden Gully, 
and the Bald Hill also, the diggings ai-e very pro- 
lific, and to all appearance an extensive region 
teeming with gulden wealth lies around. 

Although mining operations are very much im- 
peded by the frequent rains, wdiich convert the 
table land into a swamp, yet it is feared that in 
dry seasons the^e diggings will be unworkable for 
want of water. The number of miners at work 
at the Tambaroura and the vicinity is probably 
about 1000. 



APPEND iX. 



485 



The Hanging Rock may be regarded as among 
the number of those gold fields whose richness has 
been established. It is situated at the River Peel 
in New England. The Oakenville, Hurdle, and 
Oakley Creeks, flowing into the Peel, have been 
found to be rich in auriferous deposits, and a large 
tract of country in the vicinity presents the same 
indications. The number of diggers at the Hang- 
ing Rock is about 200, ^ho are doing exceedingly 
well. As much as 20 ounces per diem have been 
obtained here, and dry diggings have been dis- 
covered which promise to be exceedingly rich. 
Although the richness of the Hanging Rock dig- 
giisgs has been established, the extent and probable 
productiveness are still matter of doubt. These 
diggings have shared in the general depression from 
the unfavourable state of the season, the Peel 
having been swept by tremendous floods. 

On the remaining gold-fields, which are so only 
by anticipation, their riches not having been de- 
veloped, and but little being known of their extent, 
the Abercrombie is one of the longest known, and 
probably one of the most important. Gold has 
been found in considerable quantities, not only in 
the river itself at the Sounding Rock, or Tarshish 
diggings, but also on its tributary creeks, the 
Tnena, Mulgunnia, Copperhannia, and Mountain 
Run. The country has the usual auriferous cha- 
racteristics, somewhat resembling that in the 
vicinity of the Turon. The banks of the river, 
however, are more abrupt, and there are but few 
of those gentle slopes, so prolific in gold deposits 
at the former. The Abercrombie lies some forty 
miles to the southward of Bathurst, and forms the 
upper portion of the Lachlan River. Dry diggings 
al}ound on some of the creeks, the Tuena especiall}^ 
and large earnings have been made here. The 



436 



AUSTRALASIA. 



gold is coarse. The field may be regarded as un- 
explored, as there are not more than 200 persons 
at work on it. 

Nortli of the Abercrombie, lie the diggings at 
Campbell's River, called Havilah, and those on 
the Gilmandyke and Davis Creeks, its tributaries. 
Gold was found at Havilah shortly after the dis- 
covery of the Turon diggings, but as the yield 
was small, the latter soon drew aw^y the enter- 
prising pioneers at Campbell's River. The gold 
procured was fine, and no locality has as yet been 
discovered where the deposits are so plentiful as to 
entitle these diggings to consideration. On the 
Gilmandyke and Davis Creeks coarse gold is ob- 
tained, and there are promising indications of 
future richness. Perhaps about 100 miners aro 
engaged at these diggings, who are making fair 
earnings. 

There is about the same number of persons en- 
gaged in digging on Winburndale Creek, which 
rises on the table land a few miles to the north- 
ward of Bathurst, and, flowing in a north-west 
direction, falls into the Macquarrie several miles 
above the junction of the Turon. No very san- 
guine anticipations are entertained as to the pro- 
ductiveness of these diggings, where, however, fair 
wages are made by the lew persons engaged at 
them. It is far otherwise, however, with the 
regions adjacent to the Macquarrie River. Gold 
has for a long time been found on this river, but 
the diggings hitherto opened have been isolated. 
Late researches, however, have brought to light 
auriferous deposits where the depth of washing-soil 
is ten and even fifteen feet, and these extend for 
miles along the banks of the river. The capa- 
bilities of such a gold-field may be guessed at 
where the supply promises to be almost inexhaust- 



APPENDIX. 



437 



ible. Only in dry weather, however, can those 
be turned to account, as the river is a large and 
important stream during the greater part of the 
year, and from the prevalence of water the claims 
cannot be worked. The Macquarrie receives the 
tributary waters of the Winburndale, the Turon, 
Summerhill, Tambaroura, Pyramul, &C.5 all auri- 
ferous streams. * 

An extensive gold field has been discovered at 
the Billabong Range, which lies nearly a hundred 
miles to the west of Bathurst, between the waters 
of the Lachlan and Began. Schists and quartz are 
the constituent rocks, and specimens of gold in 
the matrix have been found. At the Snowy 
Mountains, to the southward, where many of the 
great streams of the colony, the Murriiinbidgee, 
Murray, Snowy Hiver, &c., take their rise, the re- 
searches of the Rev. W. B. Clarke, who was 
specially appointed by the Government to survey 
this district, have disclosed an extensive tract of 
auriferous country, and several localities wiiich 
promise to be highly productive. Tne severity of 
the weather in these Alpiiie r gions will, however, 
preclude mining operations being carried on fur 
several months in the year. Over both these ex- 
tensive portions of country the utmost done in 
gold digging are isolated efforts of a few prospect- 
ing parties, who are merely testing the capabilities 
of the country. In these alone a vast field for 
enterprise lies open to the world. 

The last discovered diggings in this colony, 
which have excited the most sanguine expectations 
of their future productions, are Bingara, situated 
on the Courangoura Creek, which joins the Gwydir, 
seventy miles to the north-west of Tam worth. Tlio 
di^rgers who first discovered the treasures of this 
luculity made extraordinary gains in a short time. 



438 



AUSTRALASIA, 



and the gold appeared to lie in such abundance on 
all sides as to be inexhaustible. The gold obtained 
has consisted chiefly of nuggets and coarse grain, 
very little worn. Nuggets weighing fourteen and 
sixteen ounces have been obtained. Upon the in- 
telligence of the success of these diggings, a large 
number of persons started for them, and at present 
w-e dare say there are 590 on the ground. Tb.e 
diggings at present opened are situated on tab]e- 
iand, and it is feared that there will not be a suf- 
ficiency of water even in moderately dry seasons. 
The usual characteristics of a gold region, slate 
and quartz, abound, and a large extent of country 
in the vicinity has the same external appearance as 
that at the diggings at the Courangoura Creek. 
The country is very level, resembling the gold 
fields of Victoria, and the samples of precious 
metal obtained resemble those of Mount Alexander 
in the coarseness of the grains and their rich ap- 
pearance. At various places between the Hanging 
Rock and Bingara, gold has been found, in some 
instances lying on the surface of the ground. The 
distance of this gold field from Maitland is up- 
wards of two hundred miles in a north by west 
direction. A considerable quantity of gold has 
been received from it, and at present there is a 
large quantity in the hands of the mineis. 

According to the estimated number of diggers 
wiiich we have stated as engaged in each locality, 
the total number at the places particularised is 
about 6,000. As there are numerous creeks and 
gullies throughout the country where miners are 
at work, but which are either too unimportant to 
be named, such as Jew's Creek, the Crudine, (fee, 
or are altogether unknown, a considerable addition 
must be made to this number. If we add 2,000 
more to the 6.000, it will include all these detached 



! 

APPENDIX. 439 

miners, and any possible deficiency in our estimate 
of the number of diggers at the established gold 
fields. The total number of persons engaged in 
gold digging in this colony will then be about 
8,000, which we are inclined to think is not far 
from the mark. With such an insignificant num • 
ber of persons it is not possible that the golden 
wealth of the colony can^be adequately developed, 
or that its vast resources can be turned to account. 
Looking at the extent of auriferous country which 
we possess, it is no exaggeration to state that there 
is probable employment at our gold fields for at 
least 200,000 persons, or double the population at 
present at the Victoria diggings. 

There is one feature in the working of our placers 
which must not be overlooked. Hitherto in the 
colony, and as yet in Victoria, mining operations 
have been conducted in the same comparatively 
rude manner and appliances as at first. A pick 
and shovel and a cradle, with probably the addition 
of a crowbar and pump, have constituted a miner s 
outfit. At the exuberant diggings of Victoria, 
indeed, thousands of the more successful miners 
never use a cradle, the richness of their claims in 
large gold preventing the necessity ; but at the 
Turon and other places, the fineness of the gold 
dubt, and the manner in which it is diffused 
throughout the soil, has necessitated the utmost 
skill and care in cradling. Lately, however, com- 
panies have been formed in this colony for the mora 
effectual development of the wealth of the gold 
fields, by operations conducted on an extensive 
scale, directed by scientific skill, and aided by all 
the available mechanical appliances of modern art 
and industry. About half a dozen of these com- 
panies have already not only been formed, but 
iiuve actually commenced operations. The Great 



440 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Nugget Vein Company are setting up expensive 
machinery, on the banks of the Louisa, for crush- 
ing the auriferous quartz of their claim at tliat 
locality. The Turon Golden Ridge Quartz Crush- 
ing Company are making preparations for develop- 
ing the richness of an auriferous quartz vein on the 
Lower Turon, which promises the most splendid 
results. The Messrs. Samuel are proceeding sue-- 
cessifully with their exertions to drain the water- 
Ivole at Ophir, and the success which has already 
attended their efforts, is an earnest of the rich 
harvest they are likely to reap. The Australian 
Mutual and the British Australian Gold Mining 
Companies have combined operations, for the pur- 
pose of working the alluvial claims on the Turon. 
They have secured valuable ground at Lucky Point, 
and have made considerable progress towards de- 
veloping the golden deposits of an island in the bed 
of the Turon, contiguous to Erskine Point. It is 
rumoured that it is intended to purchase the whole 
of the bed of tiie river, at the junction of Oakley 
Creek, wdiere extraordinary quantities of the pre- 
cious metal have been found, and there is every 
reason to believe that enormous deposits lie stiii 
undisturbed. At such diggings as those in the 
bed of the Turon, presenting great difficulties to 
the ordinary miner, the golden treasure can only 
be fully developed by the operations of companies, 
possessing an unbounded supply of labour, and 
bringing to their aid all the appliances of mecha- 
nical and scientific skill. 

Gold has been found throughout more than eight 
degrees of latitude. — from Bingara at the north to 
the ranges near Cape Otway, in Victoria. There 
is good reason for believing that it exists throuc^hout 
twelve degrees, as samples of the precious metal 
were found by the late Mr. Mitchell, sou of the 



APPENDm 



441 



surveyor-general, as far north as Mount Abundance 
at the Fitz-E/Oy Downs. The easternmost diggings 
in Australia yet discovered are those at the Hang- 
ing Hock, about 151 degrees of east longitude. 
A gold field has recently been discovered in South 
Australia, in about the 139 degree of longitude, 
twelve degrees to the westward ; but whether gold 
w^ili be found throughout the intervening country 
it is impossible to say. It has, certainly, been 
found as far westward, in Victoria, as the 14ord 
meridian, and Mount Cole and Mount William. 
The intellect in vain endeavours to estimate the 
stupendous mineral wealth diffused over this tract 
of country, and the imagination recurs to those 
fairy scenes in Arabian tales, where the youthful 
and delighted fancy wandered over mountains of 
solid gold, and through valleys lustrous with spark- 
ling diamonds — scenes that the waking faculties 
see almost literally realized in the wilds of Australia. * 

The following remarks of the Special Report of 
the " Sydney Morning Herald," on the Northern 
Gold Fields, are worth noticing : — • 

I n the report I have made of the Northern Gold 
Fields, it is almost unnecessary to state that I can 
have no motive, no interest, in stating any thing 
but the truth. 

I have nothing to do with either the production 
of, or the traffic in, gold, nor have I any material 
interests or friendly associations which would in- 
duce me to cry up any one district of the colony to 
the prejudice of another. The facts 1 have stated 
have been verified by my own observations, the 

* The total quantity of Gold shipped from Sydney, np 
to the 3rd of November, 1852. amounted to no less than 
THIRTY-FIVE TONS of the estimated value of upwards 
of THREE MILLIONS sterling, 
u 2 



442 



AUSTRALASIA. 



opinions I liave expressed are the result of honest 
convictions, after much careful inquiry and reflec- 
tion. 

Far less has it heen my ohject to excite people 
either in this colony or elsewhere, to rush unad- 
visedly to the diggings I have described. 

It is true 1 have not had the advantage of that 
comparative experience which the inspection of 
gold fields in other districts must afford, but I 
believe the digger who goes to the north must 
expect hardships fully equal to those experienced 
in any other quarter ; that in the various locahties 
his operations will be equally exposed to the vicis- 
situdes of the weather and the climate, and that 
until a far more extensive development of the field 
is accomplished the uncertainty of success will be 
greater than ordinary. But while I would excite 
no false hopes, I certainly would say nothing that 
would discourage enterprise in the Northern Gold 
Fields. It is now an established certainty that 
gold working must, for a period of some years at 
least, become a settled occupation in Australia ; 
and this being the case, it is equally futile and 
dangerous to discourage it by false representations, 
or partial statements. If gold seeking is to be an 
Australian occupation, it will be better that it shall 
be as profitable as possible, and on every account 
will it have to be regretted that any concealment 
should have been made of the richness or advan- 
tages of peculiar districts. Half the evils attendant 
upon the pursuit of gold will be averted, if the 
precious metal is found distributed in something 
like equal proportions over the whole of the great 
districts and provinces of this continent, for by 
this means, and this means alone, will the balance 
of population be maintained, and invested capital 



APPENDIX. 



443 



and material interests be preserved from ruin and 
decay. 

Under such views as these, boweyer miich I 
may doubt as to the general benefits to be derived 
from the production of gold in any country which 
abounds in other resources of wealth, it is a deep 
and solid satisfaction to find that tlie beautiful and 
productive district through which I have recently 
travelled does possess its treasures beneath the soil 
distributed with liberal hands. 

That the gold fields of the north must in the 
appointed time hold out attractions which should 
avert the desolating infiuence which the abstraction 
of the population of the district of the Hunten 
and its tributaries would set at work, I have no 
doubt, and when the importance of this ^-^istrict, \n 
a natural point of view, is considered, this convic- 
tion is most gratifying. 

It was in the earnest hope that I should arrive 
at this conviction that I commenced my !ate inves- 
tigation, and although I am sure I have not allowed 
the desire for the fulfilment of that hope to bias my 
opinions; although the wish has not been ^' the 
father to the thought" which 1 have indulged in 
and expressed in these papers, it is in something of 
a gratulatory spirit that the hope is destined to be 
realized, that I conclude these observations. 

The cities and towns of the Hunter need not fear 
the extinction or even interruption of that spirit of 
enterprise which is rapidly giving them a commer- 
cial importance, worthy of their British character 
and British origin. On the contrary, increased 
wealth, increased population, and consequent in- 
creased consumption, will only add to the returns 
of their thrifty industry and prudent enterprise. 
The vallevs laden with corn, and the vineyards 
teeming with wine, may still flourish, the glory^ 



444 



AI'STRALASIA. 



the adornment, and the subsistence of the country. 
The sheep upon the phiins, tlie cattle upon the 
tiiousand hills, may still luxuriate in the glorious 
pastures which at present clothe the land with ver- 
dure and beauty. 

But there is still a higher and better hope for this 
noble region in this discover v of 'Jo\d. It may be 
hoped that it will give permanence, or something 
like it, to that beautiful production of the soil 
which during this season is so prodigally displayed. 
It was painful in the extreme, to hear, that the 
plains over which I passed, on wdiicli the sheep 
and even the cattle grazed almost unseen, hidden in 
the flowers and herbage, were but two short years 
ago, bare and bleak as tlie arid desert. That the 
creeks and streamlets now bubbling with freshness 
and fertihty, were dry and unsightly gulHes. That 
even the broad and rushing waters of the Peel, the 
Nanioi, and the Manila, had dwindled to mere 
rippling rills, the last resource of the dwellers on 
thf thirsty plain. 

Now, does not the most hasty reflection tell us 
that if the footsteps of civilization are not to be 
stopped in this country, this uncertainty of pro- 
duction cannot be perpetuated ? Is not the danger 
great of leaving to tiie chapter of accidents the 
temptations of a district, which may for three 
or four years appear equal to the maintenance of 
millions of men, and tens of millions of sheep and 
cattle, whilst in other seasons of equal duration, it 
presents the aspect of a barren and unreclaimed 
wilderness. The very knowledge tliat it is subject 
o such variations is sufficient to deter the spread 
of population and the spirit of enterprise under 
ordinary circumstaiices. Xor can the most san- 
guine of tho progress philosophers hope for any 
amelioration of this state of things under the pre- 



APPENDIX. 



445 



sent system, without the intervention of some 
powerful agency. To attempt to stimulate fertility 
in the districts of the north by artificial irrigation, 
in their present .wild and unsettled state, and fur 
the mere purpose of promoting pastoral pursuits, 
would be an idle folly. Year by year are these 
pursuits rendering any such enterprise more wildly 
fallacious. Every year the destruction of the 
herbage which shades the land, the demands upon 
the streams and water courses, and more than all, 
the breaking up of the natural crust of the earth 
which to some extent resists the absorption of 
the internal moisture, by the flocks and lierds 
which are spread over the territory, are adding to 
the natural difficulties. Along the sheep and cat- 
tle tracks, or the bridal paths, which are at present 
the only existing lines of communication in this 
wild, and which are travelled only by the squatter 
and his dependents, it is impossible to hope that 
the appliances of settled civilization can travel. 
But through the influence of gold, population may 
be gathered together in various spots throughout 
this vast country, and under the encouragement of 
wise and far-seeing legislation, towns may be 
planted, and peopled, instead of imaginary town- 
ships being laid out, as has been heretofore the case. 

Between each of these towns, relations may be 
established which shall render them dependent one 
on the other ; and thus the want of the steady 
means of communication will ensure the supply of 
those means. Along roads constructed on a pro- 
per principle, and especially coincidently with 
railways, water might be carried and distributed in 
such a manner as to prevent those fatal and ruin- 
ous effects which now ensue from seasons of drought. 
Patches of land, some large and some small, tlae 
homestead of the cottager and the great proprietor, 



446 



AUSTRALASIA. 



would be reclaimed from the arid sterility of one 
season, or the rank luxuriance of another. House^^^ 
contentment, civilization, and independence would 
take the place of the hovels, repinings, and semi-har- 
barism, and serfdom, which, in spite of all that has 
been urged to the contrary, exists under the pre- 
sent squatting system. True, there is no feudal 
tyranny exercised, but tl.e dwellers in the huts are 
sold as entirely to a thorough deprivation of social 
comforts by the wages given them for their labour, 
in pastoral pursuits, as are the negroes in a cotton 
or a sugar plantation. Deprived of tbe possibility 
of the enjoyment of many of the material blessings 
of social life, and of nearly all those domestic ame- 
nities which constitute social happiness, they for 
the most part become careless of that improvement 
in their condition which is within their power, in 
the reckless resignation with which they meet the 
absence of those which are beyond their reach. 

Long before this great district, possessing as it 
does natural advantages undoubtedly great, can be 
brought under general cultivation, if even with 
all the advantages of modern science such a con- 
summation should ever be arrived at, isolated set- 
tlements must be established. Towns must be 
planted with a vigorous and thriving population, 
which by its consumption shall give birth to enter- 
prise in the culture of the land. 

Till within the last two years, the very idea of 
settling and reclaiming the country in this way 
would have appeared visionary and preposterous 
— contrary to the experience of all countries, 
and to the dictates of common sense. To plnnt 
towns and communities in the centre of a barren 
waste, would have appeared the theory of a mad- 
man ; but gold — the magician, will effect this 
'wonderous work, if the legitimate advantages of 



APPKNDIX. 



447 



gold to a great, enterprising, and industrial country, 
are wisely worked out. In the way to find gold, 
the pathless forest, the opposing mountain, the dry 
and sandy plains, can oppose no effectual obstacle ; 
all these have been and will be surmounted ; but 
it remains for the wiser spirits of our race, the 
chosen advisers and guardians of the people, to 
chasten and restrain this eager enterprise, and when 
it has reaped its golden harvest, to encourage the 
garnering up into barns which will give security 
and independence to the reapers, and peace and 
stability to the prosperity of the country. 

Whether these opinions be justified or not, 
whether the ultimxate effects of gold discovery in 
any district are to be purely for the material advan- 
tage or disadvantage of the state, or whether they 
will extend through its whole social, moral, and 
economical conformation, I have no hesitation in 
asserting, that in the results produced by it, the 
northern districts of the colony must participate to 
the fullest extent, confident as I feel that it possesses 
a gold field fully equal in richness and expanse to 
this island continent. 

Its treasures may not be for the present alto- 
gether unfolded — its development may be gradual 
or even slow. Those who thirst after gold with 
the greed and lust which no better or higher aspira- 
tions can assuage, and who in the search after it 
would sacrifice every other improvement of this 
material world, every progression and advantage of 
their common race, may turn with impatience and 
disgust from this field. To them the Turon and 
the Sacramento, may be the Albana and Parphars 
in which they alone will consent to wash ; but the 
})eaceful waters of the Hunter and its tributaries, 
will, I unhesitatingly foretell, in the long run, more 
efiectually cleanse the leprosy of avarice. 



44cS AUSTRALASIA. 



THE CITY AND PORT OF SYDNEY. 

The departure of the steam ship Formosa afiords 
us another eligihle opportunity of submitting, to 
our English friends the undeniable claims of Sydney 
to be considered the chief point of destination and 
departure of the great oceanic mail, treasure, 
passenger, and traffic routes between Great 
Britain and Australasia. In recurring to this 
subject, we again distinctly disclaim the idea of 
examining the question as to the courses and 
termini of these routes as one to be decided by 
local claims and isolated interests. "VTe regard it 
as one which must be determined by facts and cer- 
tain fixed principles, universally and permanently 
applicable ; and in reminding the distant friends of 
these colonies that Sydney has become, not alone 
through the advantage of its geographical position, 
but by the industry, energy, and spirit of enterprit<? 
of its citizens, the centre of an extensive commer- 
cial system, the mainspring of Australian traffic, 
the reo^ulator of value and exchanges in the critical 
era of our golden discoveries, and the greatest mart 
of trade in the southern hemisphere, we feel satis- 
fied that they will earnestly co-operate with us in 
our endeavours to secure for this city and port 
priority, as well as rapidity and regularity, in a 
matter of such momentous interest and importance 
as oceanic communication with Europe, whether 
by steam or otherwise. 

There is perhaps no great and important service 



APPENDIX. 



440 



at the present time requiring more to be guided bj 
some fixed principles than that which ought to be 
carried out in communications between the 
mother country and these cok)nies. With respect 
to steam postal intercourse and traffic between 
them, two great routes are now open, and a third 
is on the eve of opening : 1, the eastern route, by 
Suez and Singapore ; 2, the Cape of Good Hope 
route ; 3, the western route, by Panama and 'New 
Zealand. Now, if we ask, what has been th@ 
great object of the projectors of each of these 
lines ? The answer will be, " To bring Great 
Britain, the centre of the whole system, into the 
earliest and most profitable communication with 
her Australian dominions/' — Hiat the line by 
Suez and Singapore was chosen by the late Chan- 
cellor of the Exchequer, not for this object, but 
solely because it would afford a communication be- 
tween the East Indies and Australia, and at the. 
same time foster and develope our ititercourse with 
China, is a matter of history. (Yide Sir C. 
Wood s speech in the House of Commons, July 
25, 1850.) : — That the great object in view can- 
not be achieved by the Cape line steamers, which 
are to make the miserable penal settlement at 
Swan River their first port of arrival, and Sydney, 
the capital of Australasia, the last, it is super- 
fluous to repeat : — But that the Western or 
Panama route, by efi^ecting a saving in point of 
time of at least thirty -five days over either the 
Singapore or Cape routes, will bring London, the 
seat of Australian commerce, into the earliest and 
most profitable communication with each other,'* 
and so accomplish what all parties profess to have 
in vievv, we have lately })roved to demonstration^ 
and have not heard a single dissentient voice. Thif> 
geograpliical position of Sydney, the large popula- 



450 



AUSTRALASIA. 



tion whose interests she represents, her extensive 
commerce, her widely -spread maritime connections, 
and the general dependence of the sister colonies 
upon her well-being, are the true grounds upon 
which a decision should be taken, or a preference 
given, in respect to the steam mail routes. Upon 
no other grounds do we put forth her claims, in so 
far as steam intercourse is concerned, because we 
should consider it utterly vicious in principle to 
allow the local interest of any particular colony to 
overhear those of such other colonies as maybe 
concerned in or afliected by this, to us, new channel 
of oceanic communication ; and therefore, on na- 
tional grounds alone, we again maintain that the 
preference must be given to the western route ; 
and before we conclude this branch of our subject 
we will request attention to the following signifi- 
cant passage from the London Times^ in its review 
of the debate to which we have referred above : — 

" The Panama route must become, at no distant time, 
England's great highway to and from the islands in the 
South Pacific, New Zealand, and New South Wales and 
its ^iependencies. There can be no doubt at all about 
this mat^-er. Public opinion is fully impressed with the 
conviction that the western route is the only one worthy 
of ad^option for these important parts of the world, em- 
bracing as it does by far the most direct, expeditious, and 
certain method of communication with our vast colonial 
possessions at the antipodes. Considerations of expense 
to the public service may induce the Singapore or eastern 
plan to be carried out ; but in that case one thing is cer- 
tain — that, if intercourse is not extended from Panama 
to Sydney by means of English steamers, the Americans 
will speedily accomplish it ; and even then the traf&c for 
^]ngla^d must evencually be brought upon the line of 
steamers from Chagres bo England."' 

Having said this much in respect to the route 
and terminus by which the prior claims of Sydney, 



APPEiNDIX. 



451 



as regards steam intercourse, will be effectually ac- 
knowledged, we shall advert to the peculiar advau- 
tages which Port Jackson offers to conamercial 
and maritime enterprise, wherever it is developed. 
New South Wales now boasts tlie simplest, the 
shortest, and the most liberal Tariff in the world. 
It contains no provision for bounty, protection, or 
prohibition of any kind whatever. In the language 
of the Colonial Secretary, when he introduced the 
New Duties of Customs Bill, which, on the 5th of 
August last, passed into a law, it makes no dif- 
ference between the produce of one country and 
the produce of anotlier ; it treats all countries 
alike. It entirely discards the objectionable system 
of ad valorem ; it narrows the range of taxable 
commodities within the smallest psosible limits ; 
and, with the view of distributing taxation fairly 
over the whole community, and thereby easing its 
individual pressure, it taxes the articles of luxury 
most generally and largely consumed." But let 
our Tariff speak for itself. Its levies are limited 
to the following duties: — 



Malt liquors of all sorts, 0 
Ditto do. 0 

Coffee, chocolate, and 

cocoa, ... 0 
Currants, raisins, and 

other dried fruits 
Brandy and Gin 
All other proof spirits 
Liqueurs, cordials, bran- 
died fruits, and strong 
waters 
Refined sugar 
Unrefined do. . 
Molasses 
Tea . 



1 per gallon, in wood. 

2 „ Bottle, 

Of per lb. 



0 2 

6 0 per gallon. 
4 0 



per cwt. 



^ per lb. 



452 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Miiii u 1 a c t 111- e cl Tobacco 
(other than cigars and 
snuff) . . .16 per IK 

Until the 31st Decem- 
ber, 1853, and there- 
after ... 0 8 „ 

Cigars and snuff . 2 0 

Wine, in Wood or Bottle 1 0 per gallon. 

Let the producers, manufacturers, acd shippers 
ill distant lands compare this, our Tariff of eight 
classes, with the formidable catalogue of taxable 
commodities which the custom-house of every 
other port in the universe exhibits, and they will 
be prompt to acknowledge the verity of the 
Colonial Secretary's prediction when, in his speech 
already referred to, he said that " this Tariff will 
open out a new era in the commerce of New 
South ales ; give an impetus to foreign enter- 
prise, hitherto impeded by restrictive duties, and 
igecure to the city and port of Sydney a steady and 
extensive increase in its trade with other countries." 

But our loCal Legislature has not stopped here 
in its wide and liberal resolve to give to the Port 
of Sydney every possible attraction, and substan- 
tial advantaoe to all the trading and maritime 
countries. Previous to the present session of 
council various heavy dues and fees were made 
payable by shipping entering this harbour ; namely, 
fees to harbour masters for repairing" on board ves- 
sels entering, and for the removal of vessels from 
one mooring to another ; fees towards the mainte- 
nance of light houses ; charges made payable on 
the entry inwards, and clearance outwards of ves- 
sels ; and tonnage due% for the support of the 
water police establishment. By an act of the pre- 
sent session, (16 Yic. No. 8.) which received the 
royal assent on the 19th of August ult., it is set 



APPENDIX. 



453 



forth, that; it will be of advantage to the trade and 
cornraerce of New South Wales that these several 
charges, dues, and fees now payable on ship- 
ping, should be abolished ; and it enacts, there- 
fore, that so much of the several acts of council, 
which impose and relate thereto shall be repealed 
forthwith. Thus it will be seen, that wliether as 
regards customs duties, or harbour dues and fees, 
the great principles of free trade and free naviga- 
tion have been carried out to the utmost extent by 
the legislature of New South Wales, and the port 
of Sydney is thereby enabled to offer advantages 
and facilities unequalled by any other port of 
commerce in either hemisphere. 

It is with no invidious feeling of rivalry, but 
purely in justice to ourselves, that we here briefly 
refer to the very different spirit w-hich pervades 
the authorities of the sister colony of Victoria, in 
regard to the shipping wliich arrives in Port 
Philip, Whilst our legislators were cordially ac- 
ceding to the above liberal measure, proposed by 
the local executive, the government of Victoria 
was engaged in preparing a bill by which, on the 
ground of expediency, it is proposed to add gon- 
siderably to the stringency of existing British Im- 
perial and local acts that relate to shipping arriving 
in the ports of that colony ; and to itnport into the 
statute book of Victoria, some of the most vexatious 
and prohibitory provisions of the American harbour 
code. It proposes, that, for every statute adult 
arriving in Port Philip, whether from beyond the 
seas, or from the si^^ter colonies, masters of ships 
shall pay into the hands of an appointed officer the 
Slim of five shillings ; that no entry shall be deemed 
to have been legally made until such payment is 
officially acknowledged ; that any master neglect- 
ing to pay such rate shall be liable to a penalty 



454 



AUSTRALASIA. 



ijot exceeding £100 nor less than £50 ; that every 
luaster shall execute jointly and severally with two 
sufficient sureties, a bond to the Queen in the sum 
of £75 for every invalid passenger who is likely to 
become a charge upon the public ; conditionally 
to indemnify and liold harmless the colony of 
Victoria, or any of its public institutions, from any 
expense or charge which shall or may be incurred 
within the space of five years from the execution 
of the bond for the maintenance, &c., of such pas- 
sengers ; and that the penalty for refusing to exe- 
cute such bond shall be £100 or not less than £50, 
in addition to the £75 named in the bond. Thus 
do Port Philip and Port Jackson present totally 
different aspects for the consideration of merchants, 
shipowners, and intending colonists. In the one 
every possible due, fee, and charge are rigorously 
exacted ; in the other they have been altogether 
abolished. 

Nor in Port Jackson are the attractions for 
traders and shippers confined to the liberality of 
the customs and harbour regulations. No charges 
for lightering are needed ; for ships of 1500 tons 
lie close to the noble wharves and massive stone 
built stores, which extend from the Circular Quay 
far down Darling Harbour; and the charges for 
wdiarfage and storage are upon a scale in perfect 
keeping with the liberal spirit of our public coni- 
mercial co le. Perhaps there are few things which 
astonish a stranger upon landing at the Circular 
Quay more than the degree of fruition, and the still 
greater degree of proujise, presented by tlie co.^tly 
piles of masonry which have risen, and are still 
rising, in every direction near the available ap- 
proaches to the harboitr ; and the wonder at the 
extent and style of these wholesale receptacles for 
the commodides brought hither from all quarters 

O J. 



APPENDIX. 



455 



of the globe, is increased when he beholds the 
architectural displays of George and Pitt Streets, 
in every variety of classical and substantial eleva- 
tion. In the tendency and character of our archi- 
tectural and decorative taste, it will be strange if 
he perceive not the reflection and embodiment of 
tlie general mind and character of our enterprising 
citizens; whilst in the peace and order which still 
continue to prevail, both day and i^ht, in our busy 
thoroughfares, the same picture may be drawn in 
the exciting gold days of 1852, as Count Strzelecki 
drew when he landed, full of prejudices, as he ad- 
mits, upwards of ten years ago : — 

I found that night, in the streets of Sydney, a decenc}" and 
quiet which I have never witnessed in any of the ports of 
the United Kingdom.. No drunkenness, no sailors' quarrels^ 
no appearance of prostitution, were to be seen. George- 
street, the Regent-street of Sydney, displayed houses and 
shops modelled after the fashion of those of London: but 
nowhere did its lamps, or the numerous lights in its win- 
dows, which reflected upon the crowd, betray any of those 
signs of a corrupt state of society common to the streets 
of other capitals. Since then, how many nights like the 
first have I not witnessed, in which silence, the feelmg of 
perfect security, and the delicious freshness of the air, 
mingled with nothing that could break the solitary walk! 

We shall probably be accused in some quarters, 
and suspected in others, of painting the metropolis 
of Australia coleur de rose^ and of extravagance in 
our statements as to its present, and predictions as 
to its future. To sucli a charge v^^e shall offer but 
very few words. In 1834, the Rev. C. P. N. Wil- 
ton, of Newcastle, furnished a graphic description 
of Sydney, for the N. S. W. Post Office Directory 
for that year. In his elegant illustration of the 
then rising prospects of the colony, he remarked, 

Although Australia cannot boast a Pactolus, yet 



456 



AUSTRALASIA. 



the Tery sand in the suburbs of her capital may 
be turned into gokl^ many tons of this mineral being 
now shipped to England, in consequence of the dis- 
covery of its possessing the rarest qualities for the 
manufacture of glass/' We remember that this 
was deemed an extra vao:ant exaoforeration at the 

O CO 

time ; but what would have been said if any one 
had ventured to predict then, as we are able to 
declare now, shipment in Port Jackson, in the 
space of seventeen months, (from June 3rd, 1851, 
to Xov. 3rd, 1852.) of Thirty-five Tons of pure 
gold, washed from the sands of many an Australian 
Pactolus, or dug from the veins of an equally rich 
Mount Timolus, and whose value is estimated here 
at Three Millions sterling ? With this astounding 
fact before us, the result of but an imperfect know- 
ledge of the wonderful resources of this land ; whilst 
it would be unwise to be too sanguine, it would 
also be ungrateful to remain silent, and to refrain 
from offering bright predictions for the future. 



APPExND!X. 



457 



PRESENT STATE OF MELBOURNE. 

The quantity of gold exported since October, 
1851, represents a value of £8,863,477, and all 
these accounts, we are assured b;^he Melbourne 
Herald," are rather under than overstated. These 
astounding results have been obtained by unskilled 
labourers, working without either plan or concert. 

The geological position, as well as the many inter« 
esting points of this town and neiglibourhood, are 
well known to a large portion of the inhabitants of 
these colonies ; but doubtless there are thousands 
of persons constantly arriving in Sydney from all 
parts of the world, to whom a general description 
of these matters would not prove uninteresting. 
Feeling assured of this, I would commence by 
stating that iVIelbourne is about 600 miles from 

Sydney, and about ndles in the same direction 

from Bass's Straits. The first approach to the land 
is through a bay of considerable extent, and offering 
but little shelter from the strong winds which at 
various periods of the year infest the coast. After 
crossing this bay, we arrive at the Inner Heads, on 
the N.W. side of which is erected a lighthouse. 
Passing through these heads, the channel for some 
two or three miles is narrow, about two miles in 
width : after leaving: which we find ourselves in 
the Middle Bay, and we have now a run across 
the harbour, if it can be so termed, of about forty 
miles, ere we are safely anchored in Hobson's Bay, 
off William's Town. The whole extent of these 
extensive bays is flanked by a very large extent of 
country perfectly flat, and of a soil scarcely to l a 

X 



458 



AUSTRALASIA. 



surpassed in richness. These flats, or, perhaps, 
more properly speaking, the flat, is many miles in 
breadth, until it is lost in the distance, where it is 
walled in by an amphitheatre of hills. The first 
division of the town and the parts adjacent form 
the approaches to tlie celebrated gold-fields. 

Save the crowded state of the streets, the con- 
tinual bustling of the people, the high-pressure 
physical power JIalled into action by every one, 
there is little to indicate that we are in the great 
centre or capital of the Victoria gold mines. There 
is not that display of gold in the shop windows 
which we see in Sydney ; but in almost every 
other shop the precious metal is bought, and it is 
not till we get behind these establishments that we 
can form any notion of the immense quantity of 
auriferous wealth constantly pouring into the town. 
Men, whose weather-beaten countenances — indica- 
tive of the severe toil through which they have 
passed— with bags under their arms containing 20, 
30, 40, or even 60 pounds of the dust ; women, 
who have shared in their labours, with reticules 
filled with bags of the precious metals, may hourly 
be seen disposing of their gains, and struggling 
with the merchant for an extra penny per ounce. 
A flaming placard, big as the little shop window, 
announces that the shopkeeper wants 10,000 
ounces this day, the highest price given/' How 
can he buy it ? he cannot, perhaps, scrape together 
as many shillings. He chances it. The great 
bullion merchant turns over his little capital so 
many times a day, always purchasing at tvv^o or 
three pence per ounce below par, from some of the 
careless diggers who are not over particular ; and 
thus the 10.000 ounces are always wanted. Large 
sums of money are thus macie, the seller being 
often dispirited at being bandied about through the 



459 



muddy streets with heavy bags of gold under his 
ann, and thus often gets rid of Km troublesome 
charge at a sacrifice. Some of these merchants 
often wrong each otlier by stating that the laws of 
gravitation differ in some of the shops ; and 1 cer- 
tainly have seen nuggets weigh differently in oppo- 
sing scales. But if ttie external and more tangible 
evidences of wealth are not so great in Melbourne 
as in Sydney, there are other features indicating 
the fact which are not quite so pleasing. Drunken 
men and women stagger about, or ride through the 
streets in cabs, at a guinea per hour, never under, 
with hundreds, nay, some with thousands of pounds 
in their pockets in cheques and notes. Or, go into 
t!ie Bank of Australasia, watch for an hour, aikd 
see the immense amount paid over the counter in 
that time. Examine the class of persons, many of 
them are of decent exterior, others are drunk, and 
there is an air of dissipation telling of the lowest 
haunts — men whose ragged garments and lacerated 
countenances tell of the terrible debauch they have 
sdll left unfinished. See how they grasp the notes 
handed to tliem by the casiiier ; they do not trouble 
themselves to count them. Their druEiken com- 
panions are waiting for them outside ; aiid did we 
follow them for the remainder of the day and night, 
we should find them in the lowest taverns ; if they 
esccipe the drugged liquors prepared for them by 
tiieir friends, tiiey have another ordeal to pass 
tiirough — they have to make their way home ; but 
in a dark spot (for there is no gas amidst all their 
wealth) they are " bailed up." 

Now, in every peaceful and well regulated town, 
like Sydney, with its 50,000 citizens, who can 
walk through any part of the city, day or night, 
nifUiuJested, this s^^stem of bailing up," when 
explained, can scarcc^ly be credited. The attacked 



400 



AUSTRALASIA. 



^ is generally a driuiken successful digger, wliose 
movements have generally been watched during the 
day. The time for carrying out tliis operation is 
after dark; the place some secluded spot by which 
the unfortunate man has to pass on his w^ay home. 
The gang generally consists of tliree men, two 
of whom advance, and, seizing the arms of the 
person attacked, pull them behind him, while the 
third, holding him by the throat, pins or bails" 
him up against the wall, and tlius he is robbed. 
The assault is invariably so sudden, and the plan 
so well arranged, that the wliole aiFair is over 
before the unlucky man thinks of resistance. 
There appears to be a degree of bold bravado in 
some of these attacks most pleasing to numbers of 
that good natured portion of the public who are 
participating in the enormous distribution of w^ealth 
from the gold-fields. 

In the midbt of this chaos — this unsettling of 
everything — and while tlie large proportion of the 
classes of great and small capital are making rapid 
fortunes, tiiere are pleasing evidences of confidence 
in the future stability of the colony. Not the least 
significant of these signs is the fact tliat the enor- 
mous wealth gained at the mines is cliiefly invested 
in the purchase of real property — the land. This, 
it cannot be questioned, is one of the healthy signs 
of the times. Hence it is that the land, especially 
in the neighbourhood of Melbourne and Geelong, 
lias risen enormously in value. Building ground 
in one of the principal streets in the capital was 
recently sold at £100. per foot ; and on the day on 
which I now write, quarter-acre suburban allot- 
ments were sold at the rate of £3,000. per acre. 
Speculation, of course, runs very high, and many 
capitalists are, by the purchase and sale of land, 
making rapid fortunes. 



APPExNDlX. 



461 



The following is an abstract of the revenue for 
the quarter ending 30th of September, 1852. As 
might be expected, it exhibits a vast increase in 
the revenue over the corresponding quarter of last 
year. The totals stand thus : — 



General Revenues 
Crown Revenue ... 

Total Revenue . 



Quarter ended 
30th Sept., 1851. 
£ s. d. 
30,322 16 10 
.. 22,871 9 3 



53,194 6 1 



Quarter ended 
30th Sept., 1852. 
£ s. d. 
99,148 16 11 
363,191 4 6 



462,340 1 5 
53,194 6 1 



£409,145 15 4 



Increase (869 per cent) 



The chief items of increase are, of course, from 
the Land Sales and the Gold. The former yielded 
only £10,016 185. Qd. during the quarter in 1851 ; 
but no less than £267,754 4^. lOd. in the past 
year — an increase of sometiiing more than a quar- 
ter of a million sterling. The gohl licenses yielded 
in the past year £80,560 7^. 3J. besides £10,897 
145. IIJ. for escort fees*, in all, £91,458 2^. 2</., 
which all comes under the head of increase, no 
revenue from gold having been received into the 
Treasury up to the end of September, 185 K The 
licenses and leases for Crown Lands increase from 
£1,858 lis. Sd., to £2,976 3.9. Od. ; and the Timber 
Licenses show £673 against £320 105. in the pre- 
ceding September quarter. 

Almost every item under the head of General 
Revenue shows a very large increase. In the 
Customs, for instance, the duties on spirits have 
risen from £12,235 155. IJ., to £55,378 Ss. lOd.^ 
an increase of 350 per cent. Tobacco yielded 
£5,280 65. 9d, in the September quarter of 1851, 
an4 £ 1 5,047 35. 9d. in the last quarter — nearly 
three times as much. The ad valorem duties realiswd 



462 



AUSTRALASIA. 



jB5,252 2s, lld.^ in 1851, and duties on wine, tea, 
and coffee, although altered by the new tariff re- 
cently come into operation, have yielded a total of 
<£4,824 105. 5d, Port and harbour dues show an 
increase of £2,987 9^. Id. ; auction duties rise 
from £273 7^. l\d.^ to £879 Ss. lOd. ; publicans 
licenses, from £1.222 18.9., to £1,729 16*5.; fines 
and forfeitures, from £222 125 4d. to £8,121 ]ls, 
4:d. ; and the variable items ranging under the 
head "Fees," all show balances in favour of 1852. 
The Po:^t -office remains about stationery, the items 
being £2,523 5s. Sd. and £2. 638 5s, Sd. respectively. 

The total result is, therefore, highly satisfactory 
— the quarter's revenue rising to nearly half a 
million sterling, or at the rate of nearly two millions 
per annum. Besides the sums given above, there 
are sums standing over, which have been collected 
but not paid in during the quarter. These are, 
from land sales £45,531 I6s. 6^/., and from gold 
about £69,563 ; but these w411 be included in the 
next quarter. 

The only item decidedly unsatisfactory is the 
gold licenses. Adding the amounts paid in and 
not paid in during the quarter, w^e get a total 
of £150,128 75. Sd.; but of this £40,832 165. lid 
stood over from the previous quarter. The license 
fee, therefore, amounted to £109,795 IO5. id. for 
the last quarter. Now it is admitted on all hands 
that there cannot be less than 60.000 persons at 
the diggings (we purposely take the lowest esti- 
mate), and the amount that number of licenses 
would yield is, £270,000., or nearly two-and-a- 
half times the amount actually received. 



APPENHIX. 4(^3 



THE ADELAIDE GOLD-FIELDS. 

What we before assumed under this head as 
probable, now turns out to ])e a reality. We have 
a workable gold-field in South Australia, al>out 
twenty- three miles of Adelaide. 

Suhjoined is the Repor^of the Colonial Secretary : 

Adelaide, August 24, 1852. 
" Sir — I have the eatisfactiou to be enabled to report to 
your Excellency, that 1 left Adelaide yesterday morning, 
accompanied by Captain Freeling, Surveyor- General, ?.nd 
guided by a man named Chapman, who lias put in a claim 
for the reward of £1,000 ofi'ered by government for the 
discovery of a profitable gold-field in South Australia. I 
arrived about two o'clock at a spot in the Stringy -bark 
Forest, about two miles beyond the bridge over the 
Onkaparinga, at Warland's public-house. There, in tiie 
presence of many persons, I witnessed the washing of 
several tin-dishes of surface-soil taken indifferently from 
various places. In all except one gold-dust was obtained. • 
I filled a dish myself, making a selection from the spot 
away from where another person had been : and on the 
earth bemg washed, gold-dust was obtained. I then re- 
quested three men, of whom Chapman was one, to take 
the earth from any place of their own selection, and wash 
until they had obtained an ounce of gold. This was ac- 
complished in less than an hour, with no other appliances 
than one spade and three tin dishes. I am quite satisfied 
that the soil for some acres at least is highly auriferous, 
and that there is every probability of this becoming a pro- 
fitable workiug. As a country of similar formation extends 
to a considerable distance to the north, and stretches 
away to the south towards Encounter Bay, Cape Jervis, it 
is not unreasonable to suppose that gold-fields may be dis- 
covered in other places, probably, also, in Kangaroo 
Island. The formation of the gold-field upon which 1 am 
reporting consists of sand, quartz, and iron-slone, in a 
state of gravel, resting immediately on clay, with a rocky 



464 



AUSTRALASIA. 



substratum of sandstone. As this formation is indicated 
in this province generally by the growth of the striDgy- 
baik tree^ I am induced to suppose that all our stringy- 
baik forests will be found to be auriferous. 

''Mr. Eonney, the Commissioner of Crown Lands, joined 
me on the gi oiind, and I have left him with a small party 
of police and a surveying pai-ty. He was issuing licenses to 
dig for gold when I left at half-past five o'clock the same 
day, and numbers of diggers were preparing to take out 
licerses this morning, which will fairly test the yalue of this 
field. I am not able to state with cei-tainty whether the 
spot where I saw the gold raised is private property, or 
belongs to the Crown, although I believe it to be Crown 
property. The party of sr#veyors will ascertain the fact 
to-day, and I have dii'ected Ivlr. Bonney to send in a special 
report to-morrow of the result of to-day's operations. 

"1 have, &c., 

''B. T. FiN>'iss." 

" To the Lieutenant-Governor." 

" P.S. — The distance from Adelaide is about twenty -two 
miles, and the gold-neld is intersected by the main road 
on the south-east." 

The largest qunntity raised by any one party 
at the Echungfa diggiDgs, however, does not ex- 
ceed 5 lbr2. to 5 and a half pounds in weight. 
Many smaller parcels have been exhibited, say of 
two, three, and four ounces each, up to as many 
pounds, but it is exceedingly difficult to get at any 
thing like the aggregate amount raised, owing to 
the nearness of the diggings to Adelaide, and the 
readiness w^itb which tlie earnings of the diggers is 
turned into cash, without tlie intervention of third 
parties, either in the s^^iiape of brokers, or a govern- 
ment escort. At a moderate calculation, however, 
it cannot be less than ?.5 lbs. in weight. This, 
certainly, is no great things, as compared with the 
Victoria diggings ; l)ut it n)ust be remembered 
that it is equal to £3.000. sterling, and that the 
Echunoa diggings have only just been opened, and 
that too at the moat unpropitious season of the 



i^PPENDlX, 



465 



5^ear. At first, little was attempted at EchuDga 
beyond surface v/ashing ; but the parties now at 
Work are beginning to sink steadily on the rock, 
and not without a fair share of encouragement. 
Most of them are old Mount Alexander gold dig- 
gers, and their belief is that they can do better at 
Echunga than at Mount Alexander, or they would 
not stop another hour. This is the true test of 
the value of the discovery ; and although there is 
nothing great to report of it at present, we shall 
probably ere long have to speak of it in altogether 
different terms. Some 5ne nuggets of Echunga 
gohl are to be sent home by the Australian^ 
weighing from two pennyweights to half an ounce 
and an ounce each. The largest yet discovered is 
about an ounce and a-half in weight. 

Camp, Echunga Gold-fields, Nov. 6^ 1852. 

Sir, 

I have the honour to state, for the information of his 
Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor, that since my last 
week's report, thirty -nine licenses have been issued, 
making the total issue, up to this day of the present finan- 
cial month, fifty -five, as thus shovv^u : — 

Previously reported - - - - 16 
Since issued 39 

Total - - - - 55 

Few people have left during the past week, and few have 
arrived. Those who are now employing themselves upon 
the diggings apjjear to be more settled in their purpose of 
remaining. 

Many cases of success attending the diggings on the hill, 
which has been named Windlass Hill," have been 
I'eported to me. Operations have extended from thence 
into the gully, which has been named (from the person 
who first discovered gold there) Peltus's Gully." 

The nugget weighing 4 oz. 12 dwts., which 1 have had 
the honour of submitti7ig for his excellency's inspection, 
was discovered by Mr. Scown, of the Green Hills. 
X 2 



466 



AUSTRALASIA. 



Oil Ta^sday, one Caristian Grenbourg complained of a 
man (who stated his name to be John Paul) for interfering 
with him in his work, and who he suspected had robbed 
or intended to rob him. As Grenbourg could not posi 
tlvely say that he had lost any part of his gold, and dis- 
claimed that which was found in the possession of Paul, 
the charge of larceny could not be sustained. The cii'cum- 
stances of the case were of such a natrire, added to which 
Paul had been loitering about the diggings under the pro- 
tection of a license surreptitiously obtained, as to justify 
my ordering him off the diggings, and refusing him a 
license. I may mention that this is the first and only 
charge affecting the honesty of persons engaged on these 
diggings. — I have the honouf to be, sir, your most obedient 
ser\ a.nt, 

A. J. Murray, 

Assistant Gold Commissioner. 

To the R'ght Honourable the Colonial Secretary. 



ADELAIDE CHAMBEH OF COMMERCE. 

The atinnal meeting of the Cliarober of Commerce 
was held to receive a report from the coiTimittee. 
The principle feature of the report is a clear and 
very correct statement of the commercial circum- 
stances of tlie colony during the past eventful year, 
which I extract. It will put Knglish readers in 
possession of the real f icts of tlie case in as concise 
a form as possible, while it has the advantage (-f 
heing authenticated by the respectable body fro? si 
which it emanate-. The report is the productiofi 
of the chairman of the chamber, G EMer, E-q., of 
the firm of Messrs. A. L. Elder and Co. : — 

The past year has been one of unusual interest arid 
anxiety to the mercantile community, on account of the 



APPEiNDIX. 



467 



unprecedented crisis which has taken place in the affairs 
of this province. During the period which has elapsed 
since the last meeting of this body, the colony has been, 
to all human appearance, on the verge of ruin. During 
that interval we have seen credit destroyed, trade paralysed, 
the public finances unclermined, and a feeling of alarm 
and insecurity universally prevalent ; and if, while meet- 
ing, as we do at this time, under happier auspices, the fu- 
ture is not altogether relieved from doubt and difficulty, 
we may, at all events, take courage from the past, and, 
with renewed confidfeiice in the stability of our colonial 
interests, prepare ourselves to grapple successfully with 
any emergeiicy that may arise. 

" Among the various measures which have engaged the 
attention of the committee during their tenure of office, it 
is only fitting that a prominent place should be assigned 
in their report to the Bullion Act, which was framed by 
the legislature to mitigate or avert the crisis to which 
allusion has been made ; and in order to explain the na- 
ture and effects of this celebrated ordinance, it will be 
necessary to take a brief review of the circumstances of 
the colony prior to its enactment. 

" So far back as September last, accounts reached this 
colony of the amazing productiveness of the Victoria Gold 
fields, and a growing desire to migrate thither began to 
manifest itself on tlie part of our population. The Ballarat 
fields, which then attracted the enterprise and cupidity of 
the digger, shortly resigned the palm to those of Mount 
Alexander, which greatly excelled the former in richness ; 
and when, in December, tidings succeeded tidings of the 
startling fertility of the new gold fields, a fever of excite- 
ment was created, and it became apparent that nearly all 
our able bodied labourers would be drawn away to a scene 
so calculated to intoxicate the imagination and fill the 
mind with visions of independence. Ship after ship, 
freighted with its human cargo, sailed from our shores, 
while the route overland was crowded with adventurers 
proceeding in the same direction. 

It is impossible to form anything like a correct esti- 
mate of the number who left the colony during this exodus 
of its inhabitants, as, apart from those who made their 
way overland, and respecting whom no numerical data 
exist, the custom-house returns of the emigi-ation by sea 
afford no criterion of the actual number embarked, as such 
was the rush of passengers that almost every ship took 
many more on boai'd than was indicated by her clearauce« 



468 



AUSTRALASIA. 



It is, perhaps, no exagjei-ation to say that at least 15,000 
to 20,000 individuals left South Australia durino: the pre- 
valence of the gold mania ! and when it is cousidered that 
these were all adults — the flower of our labouring classes 
— and that the entire population of this colony did not 
exceed 70,000 souls, the nature and extent of so serious a 
deprivation of its productive energy will at once be ap- 
parent. 

The natural result of these sudden and unexpected 
events was a panic, which was rendered all the more severe 
and overwhelming on account of the unsound and totter- 
ing state of our commercial position, even before the gold 
discoveries interfered to increase the general embarrass- 
ment. For more than two years past there had been con- 
siderable overtrading, which w^as beginning to entail its 
usual consequences, such as glutted markets, an undue 
amount of paper afloat, a system of renewing bills and of 
mutual accommodation, discounting on 'Change at usurious 
rates of mterest, and those shifts which are generally pre- 
monitory of a coming crash. Speculation in the shares of 
bubble mines had been carried to a fefirful excess, and 
many of our most cautious traders had been drawn into 
the vortex to their serious loss and impoverishment. The 
general unhealthy state of our colonial affairs was proved 
by the fact that bills were offered for private discount at 
30 to 40 per cent, per annum, and money was being freely 
taken on mortgage at 15 to 20 per cent, at a time when 
the employment of capital could not by any possibility 
justify such a proceeding, and few, perhaps, will be pre- 
pared to dispute that, irrespective altogether of tiie de- 
rangement introduced into our affairs by the migration of 
the inhabitants, the present year would not have passed 
away without great commercial pressure and distress. 

But the crisis which now threatened the colony was 
incalculably aggravated by the loss of our population. 
For a time it seemed that the props of our material pros- 
perity were about to give way. The streets of Adelaide 
were deserted ; houses were abandoned by their tenants ; 
rents fell, and property became unmarketable. The shops 
of our retailers presented their tempting wares in vain. 
There was a general arrest put on all business, and this at 
a time when the stock of merchandize in the market was 
nnprecedently heavy, and when the bills engagements of 
the mercantile community were larger probably than ever 
they had been before. To add to the panic the banks 
were subjected to a steady and alarming drain of specie. 



APPENDIX. 



469 



Every emigrant carried a^vay his saviac^s in gold, and it 
goon became apparent that the stock of coin in the coh:»ny 
could not long hold out under the process of re.pid ex- 
haustion to which it was exposed. The banks were thus 
placed on the horns of a dilemma. On the one hand, 
beiog compelled to redeem their notes in specie, they 
were under the imperative necessity of restricting their 
issues, and cunsequently, their discounts, if they would 
keep faith with their creditors. On the other hand, if 
they attempted to contract their discounts at a time when 
the commercial classes were subjected to a pressure which 
only the most liberal accommodation could enable them 
to sustain, a general crash was inevitable. At this juncture, 
as if to mark with greater emphasis the signs of the time-, 
a vessel arrived at Port Adelaide from Melbourne with a 
number of our colonists on board, who, after a few weeks* 
successful digging at the gold-fields of Victoria, had brought 
back with them to. this colony gold dust to the value of 
£50,000. This they were desirous of converting into 
money, but such was the straitened condition of the 
money-market, that purchasers could not be found for it. 
A portion of it was eventually sold at 55s. to 56s. per oz., 
the price at Melbourne being 60s, at the time, and the 
remainder was carried back to Victoria. No+hiDg could 
more significantly attest our critical situation than the cir- 
cumstances here referred to. If on the grounds of sound 
policy there was one object more than another which, at 
this unfortunate period it was desirable to effect, that 
object was to attract and secure by every lawful naeans the 
return of our own colonists, who would thus be induced 
to spend and invest their earnings in this colony ; and yet, 
with every disposition on their part to meet our wishes, 
they were met on the very threshhold by a barrier which 
threatened to bring about as practical an exclusion as if, 
in imitation of an imperial ukase, we had enacted a law to 
forbid their return. We were unable to buy their gold — 
we were unable to supply them with a circulating medium, 
and they must therefore remain where they were. 

It was at this time, when ruin was staring every one 
in the face, and when there had already been unmistake- 
able symptoms of an approaching run on one of the banks, 
that the committee held a conference with the managers 
of the three banking institutions with reference to the 
measures to be adopted to meet the appalling crisis. ^ t 
this meeting the difficulties of our position were fully dis- 
cussed. The radical cause of the extreme financial em- 



470 



AUSTRALASIA, 



barrassment "wliicli existed was aG'k:nowledG:ed to be the 
Biidden and uncontrollable efflux of specie which was gra- 
dually contracting the circulation into dimensions totally- 
inadequate to meet the wants of the community. It was 
considered that if the banks were permitted by law to base 
their issues for a time od imcoined gold at puch a price as 
would leave a safe margin for the transmission of the gold 
to England, and its replacement in coin, that perfect 
security would be afforded to the public, and a palliative, 
if not a complete corrective, presented to the disorder 
which prevailed. It was perceived that such a measure, 
if devised, would enable the banks to afford the required 
banking accommodation to their customers, so that every 
really solvent man should liave an opportunity of retrieving' 
his position. It was antir-ij^ated that a currency, so free 
and yet so les^itimate, would create a market for the raw 
gold, and that thus — wh^ch was a much -coveted desidera- 
tum — the gold-digger of South Australia would be laid 
under inducements to return with his auriferous treasure 
to this colony. It was unanimously held that we were 
shut up to the line of policy we have indicated, if we would 
preserve the colony from general bankruptcy, and avert a 
catastrophe which threatened to engulph all our colonial 
interests, for a time at least, in overwhelming confusion. 
To embody these views in some definite shape it was 
resolved that the Chamber, in junction with the bai^ks, 
should make urgent application to the Government to 
establish an Assay office, for the purpose of assayiDg and 
coDvei-ting gold into stamped ingots, to be exchanged with 
the banks for their notes. Such was the crude form of a 
scheme which ultimately resolved itself into the present 
Bullion Act. 

^^At a special general meeting of the Chamber, held on 
the 19th of January last, a series of resolutions were sub- 
mitted by the committee, embracing the views of the con- 
ference, to which reference has been made. These resolu- 
tions were unanimously adopted, and a memorial founded 
on them ordered to be prepared, to be presented by a 
deputation to his excellency the lieutenant-governor, pray- 
ing him immediately to convene the Legislative Council 
for the piirpose of obtaining his sanction to a measure for 
assayiDg and stamping gold, and making the bullion a 
legal tender. 

" The result is well known ; a reply was received from 
his excellency, stating that he would embrace the earliest 
opportunity of calling the Legislative Council together, 



APPENDIX. 



471 



and that he would be prepared to submit sucL. a measure 
as the emergency might require. 

" The Legislative Council, convened on the hasty sum- 
mons of his excellency, met in second session on the 28tK 
January, when, after a brief di,scussion, the ordinance 
introduced by the Grovernment was, with some amend- 
ments, unanimously carried, and afterwards in due course 
became law, 

" And here it is only an act of justice to the lieutenant- 
governor to acknowledge the obligation under which he 
has laid the colonists, for having, at considerable personal 
responsibility, although at their unanimous desire, affixed 
the Koyal sanction to a measure which, however impera- 
tively called for, and however beneficial in its operation, 
is apt to be looked upon with suspicion or aversion at a 
distance, where the peculiar circumstances which rendered 
it necessary, however forcibly described, can be but faintly 
appreciated. Such an act on his part is a graceful concession 
to the popular will, as expressed in one of its most intel- 
ligent forms, and as such is calculated to strengthen, the 
good understanding which ought to subsist between the 
Government and tiie people. 

" By the Buliiou Act it was provided that an Assay- 
office should be established, under the auspices of Goveru- 
Tuent, for melting, assaying, and stamping gold, for which 
a charge of 1 per cent., should be made to cover the cost: 
of the establishment. It was further provided that the 
owners of gold stamped at the Assa,y-office should be er- 
titled to demand of the banks their notes against the gold 
at the rate of £3 lis, per ounce for standard fineness, the 
gold in such case being passed direct from the Assay-office 
to the banks. It was also provided that the gold ingots 
should be a legal tender at the banks, and that the notes 
of the banks should be a legal tender between third parties. 
These were the chief features of the measure, which was 
to last for one twelvemonth from the period of its enact- 
ment. 

*' The effect of this measure was little short of miracu- 
lous. Credit and confidence were almost instantaneously 
restored ; the extreme tightness in the money market was 
relieved ; our traders were enabled to meet their engage- 
ments ; and the public mmd was at once raised from a 
state of paralysing despondency to one of hopefulness and 
vigour. In its more permanent results the measure has 
greatly exceeded the expectations which were formed of it. 
The most sanguine could only have calculated that it 



412 



AUSTRALASIA, 



would break our fall — that it would save the colouy from 
general bankruptcy. Xo one could have foreseen that, in 
less than six mouths, we would not only be rescued from 
impending ruin, but that our condition would be infinitely 
more sound and healthful and prosperous than ever it had 
been before ; and yet such is indisputably the case. The 
enormous stock of goods, which formerly lay like an 
incubus on the market, has — by exports to Melbourne, 
v/here, generally speaking, they realized saving prices — 
been reduced to a manageable compass. In point of fact, 
the demand now in m.any cases anticipates the supply. 
The amount of paper under discount at the banks, which 
formerly was excessive in so small a trading community, 
has dwindled into, comparatively, an insignificant sum. 
Cash payments in the transaction of business, which were 
wont to be the exception, are now becoming the rule. 
Discounting on 'Change at extravagant rates of interest, 
which formerly was of the nature of trade, has altogether 
ceased. There is no longer any borrowing on mortgage. 
Old arrears are being rapidly paid off. A large amount of 
petty debts in the books of our traders, which were looked 
upon as iocurably bad, are daily being liquidated. Added 
to all this, there is in the province, and, at the diggings 
( where deposit receipts have already been signed by our 
resident Commissioner for about £250,000 worth), gold to 
the value of £1,000,000, the property of our colonists, 
which will shortly be seeking investment in the purchase 
of land, and in other branches of our colonial industry." 



SOUTH AUSTRALIAN TARIFF. 

The following is the New Tariff, which came into 
operation on the 26tli of December, 1852 : — 

[The act was passed in the Legislative Council on the 
17th of October, 1851, and was then intended, in the 
terms of the act, to take efiect on the 26th of December 
following ; but the act having been reserved by the Gover- 
Bor for her Majesty's assent, has not hitherto acquired the 



APPENDIX. 



473 



force of law. Her Majesty's assent has since been offi- 
cially notified, and the act being tlius perfected, has been 
held to apply to the 26th of December, 1852.] — Adelaide 
Observer, Nov. 15, 1852. 



Arms, apparel, baskets, boots, brass manufac- 
tures, brushes, carriages, clocks and watches, 
copper manufactures, cotton ditto, cutlery, 
drapery, drugs, earthenware and china, fur- 
niture, glass manufactures, grindery, gro- 
ceries, haberdashery, hosiery, hardware, hats 
and caps, implements and tools, jewellery, 
lead manufactures, leather ditto, linen ditto, 
machinery, mats and matting, musical in- 
struments, oilmen's stores, paper stained and 
hangings, perfumery, pewter ware, pictures 
and prints, plate and plated goods, saddlery 
and harness, silk manufactures, stationery, 
tinware, toys and turuery, w^ood manufac- 
tures, wool ditto, and zinc ditto, are charged 
with an ad valorem duty of 

Spirits, of all kinds, not above proof, per gallon 

Wine, per gallon . . . . 

Bee]-, porter, ale, cider, and perry, ditto 

Yiuegar, ditto . . . . . 

Animals, living ; passengers' baggage ; bottles, 
imported full ; bullion and coin ; plants and 
trees ; seeds and roots ; specimens of natural 
history, and woollen mauufactures 

Bacon and hams, per cwt. 

Books, printed, ditto 

Boots and shoes, per dozen pair, from 

Bricks, per thousand 

Candles, wax, composition, &c. per hundred 
Carts and drays, 2 wheeled, each 



£. s. d. 



5 per cent. 
0 6 0 
0 2 0 
0 0 4 
0 0 1 

I Duty 
r Free. 



do. 



do. 



Ditto 4 
Cheese, per cwt. 
Wheat, per quarter 
Barley and oats, ditto 
Maize and millet, ditto 
Peas, beans, and pulse, ditto 
Flour and meal, per hundred lbs 
Dried Fruits, per cwt. 
GuD powder, sporting, ditto 
Ditto. blasting, do. 



6s. to 1 0 

5s. to 2 0 

0 6 0 

0 10 0 
1 



0 
0 
0 

0 1 

0 1 



0 0 
3 0 

1 6 
1 



474 



A r ST R A!. AST A. 







£. 


s. 


d. 


Iron, bar and rod, per ton 




0 


10 


0 


Do., sheet ani hoop, ditio 




0 


14 


0 


Do., pig, per ton 




0 


5 


0 


Leather, sole, per cwt. 




0 


3 


0 


Ditto, kip and harness, ditto . 




0 


6 


0 


Basils, per dozen 




0 


0 


6 


Enamel, per bide 




0 


3 


6 


Paper, brown, wrapr)ing, a"'^'d blotting, p 


er cwt 


0 


3 


0 


Ditto. priDtiiig and cartridge, ditto 




0 


5 


0 


Ditto, writiiio;-, per lb. 




0 


0 


1 


Suffar, refined, candied, per cwt. 




0 


4 


0 


Ditto, muscavado, and molasses, ditto 




0 


2 


0 


Tin plates^ per box 




0 


2 


0 


Tcibacco, manufactured, per lb. 




0 


1 


0 


Ditto, unmannfactv.re'l ditto 




0 


0 


6 


Ditto, boiled down in bond, for sheep-wash, 








per lb. ... 




0 


0 


1 


Cigars and cheroots, per lb. . 




0 


2 


6 


Snuff, ditto .... 




0 


2 


0 


Shingles and laths, per thousand 




0 


0 


6 


Treenails and spoke:^, per himdred . 




0 


0 


2 


Posts, rails, &c., ditto 




0 


1 


6 


Square timber, balks, spars, deals, &c. 


per 40 








cubic feet 




0 


2 


6 


Corks, per gross 




0 


0 


1 


THE ENFORCEMENT OF 


C0N1 


PR AC 


rs 



MADE IN ENGLAND WITH REFER- 



ENCE TO NEW SOUTH WALES. 

Bv the khulness of Mr. Leslie, niemLer of the 
Legislative Council of New South Wales, for the 
Clarence district, we are enabled to solve the vexed 
question as to the power of enforcing in a part of 
Australia, labour-contracts made in England. The 
colonial legislature of New South Wales has fully 
provided for this important object, by the 3rd and 
5th clauses of an act to amend a previous act known 
as the I^Iasters and Servants' Act.'* The Sni 
clause provides that contiacts entered into in Great 



APPENDIX. 



Britain, or elsewhere, the conditions of which are to 
be fiilfiiled in New South Wales, shall be equally 
valid as though they had been executed in the 
colony. And to remove, as far as possible, all 
quibbles which might arise as to the bona fide 
nature? of such docuiuent, the 5th clause of the act 
gives power to the justices to examine both master 
and servant on oath ; so that breach of contract 
€au only be made by either by the commission of 
perjury. The act is stringent enough for all gene- 
ral purposes, and under its provii^ions labour con- 
tracts may be made in this country with reference 
to New South Yv^ales, which will be as valid as a 
commercial transaction. 

ViTe subjoin the clauses of the act alluded to : — 

Declaririg that Agreements made without the Colony subject 
the parties thereto to the same jurisdiction and j^enalties 
if made within the Colony. 

III. And whereas it was recited by the said act, among 
other things, that servants in the United Kingdom, in 
British Colonies, in the British East India Possessions, and 
in Foreign Countries, occasionally contract, by indenture 
or other written agreement, with persons about to proceed 
to, or actually resident in, New South Wales;" And 
•whereas doubts have arisen v/hether such contracts by 
indenture or other written agreement are subject to the 
summary jurisdiction of Justices of the Peace, and it is 
expedient to remove the said doubts : Be it therefore de- 
clared and enacted, that all such contracts by indenture 
or other written agreement shall be of the like force and 
effect within the said colony of New South Wales as if they 
had actually been made and executed by the respective 
parties thereto within the same ; and shall subject every 
such party for any breach tliereof, upon summary convic- 
tion by or before any two oi: more justices, to the like fines, 
penalties, and punishments, as in and by the said recited 
act are provided, for any wilful violation of the provisions 
of any indenture or other written agreement actually made 
or executed within the said colony, or for any misde- 
meanour, miscarriage, miscoaduct, or ill -behaviour of any 
master or servant within the same : provided that no such 



476* 



AUSTRALASIA. 



coiitract sball be bindiDg on any person for a longer period 
than five years. 

Justices to examine pariics on oath or otherwise at their 
discretion. 

V. And whereas, doubts are entertained as to whether 
it is not impei-ative on justices under the said recited act 
to examine both complainant and defendant upon oath, 
and it is advisable to remove the same : be it therefore- 
enacted, that it shall and may be lawful for any justice or 
justices of the peace, acting under the said recited act, or 
under this act, to exercise his or their discretion as to the 
examination of any complainaat or complainants, or de- 
fendant or defendants, under the same. 



AUSTRALIAN EXPORTS. 

Some idea of the importance of the Australian 
Colonies may be inferred from the following account 
of the Exports from the different provinces, iu 
1851. The returns for 1852 have not yet been 
received. 

jSTew South Wales. — Oil, black, 642 tuns; ditto, sperm/ 
721 tuns ; leather, 336 bales ; copper, value, £5,293 ; cop- 
per ore, 1,888 tons ; gold, value, £54 ; wool, 47,792 bal -s ;; 
tallow, 11,098 casks; hides, 59,545 — imported in 41 ships;' 
the average cargo of wool being 1,165 bales; the average 
number of passengers, 128; and the total value, £1,222,670. 

Port Philip. — Leather, 151 bales ; wheat, 6 quarters ; 
wool, 55,814 bales; tallow, 9,233 casks ; hides, 6,357— 
imported in 36 ships; the average cargo of wool hein^ 
1,578 bales ; the average number of passengers, 122 ; and 
the total value, £1,272,845. 

Western Australia.— Wool, 1,069 bales; guano, 2,100- 
tons, imported in seven ships ; the average cargo of wool 
being 173 bales ; the average number of passengers, 103 ; 
and the total value, £29,780. 

South Australia. — Leather, 3 bales ; copper, value, 
£82,985; copper ore, 3,900 tons; wool, 12,170 bales; taL 
low, 195 casks — imported in 18 ships; the average cargo 
of wool being 676 bales ; the average number of passengers^ 
141 ; and the total value, £415,000. 



APPENDIX, 



HoBART Town.— Oil, black, 316 tuns ; ditto, sperm, 644 
tuDS ; leather, 231 bales; wool, 11,811 bales; tallow, 81 
casks ; hides, 223-— imported in 13 ships ; the average 
cargo of wool being 909 bales ; the average rmmber of 
passengers, 116 ; and the total value, £202,738. 

Launceston.— Leather, Shales ; wool, 6,635 bales; the 
average cargo of wool being 829 bales, imported in 8 
ships; the average number of passengers, 126 ; and the 
total value, £132,798. 

Portland Bay. — Oil, sperm, 66 tuns ; wool, 6,322 bales; 
tallow, 139 casks, imported in five ships ; the average 
cargo of wool being 1,264 bales ; the average number of 
passengers, 133; and the total value, £130,400. 

Recapitulation.— Oil, black, 958 tuns ; ditto, 
Fperm, 1,460 tuns: leather, 729 bales; wheat, 6 
qrs. ; copper, value, <£88,278 ; copper ore, 6,028 
tons; wool, 143,280 bales; talk)V7, 20,792 casks; 
hides, 6*6,908 ; guano, 2,100 tons : total value, 
£3,486,768. 



STEAM COMMUNICATION WITH THE 
AUSTRALIAN COLONIES. 

The establii^hmeiit of Steam communication with 
Australasia has already been effected, and the re- 
sult has proved so satisfactory, that no less than 
three different routes vv-ill soon be established, viz; 

1. — Via the Cape of Good Hope, calling at 
Table Bay, Swan River, Adelaide, Victoria, 
to Sydney. 

2. — Overland to Singapore, from thence, calling 
at Swan River, Adelaide, Victoria, to Sydney. 

3. — The Australian Pacific Mail Steam Packet 
Company (wliich will commence running in a 
few months,) to Chagres, from thence to 
Aspinwall, across the Isthmus to Panama, 
and calling at one of the Sandwich Islands, to 
Sydney direct. 



AUSTRAL ASIAe 



OCEAN PENNY POSTAGE. 



Permit me to call your attention and that of your readers, 
to a movement in England, the aim and end of which 
must deeply and peculiarly interest all the colonial popu- 
lation of the British Empire. This is the establishment of 
an Ocean Penny Postage, by which a letter, under half an 
ounce in weight, shall be merely conveyed from any port 
of the United Kingdom to any port beyond the sea, at 
which the British mail packets may touch, for one penny- 
Thus the whole charge on a letter from any town in Great 
Britain to any port in the British colonies or dependencies, 
would be 2d. ; or Id. for the British inland, and Id. for, 
the ocean transit. If an inland Penny Post were adopted 
in all the colonies, then the entire charge on a letter from 
any town in great Britain or Ireland to any town in the 
British provinces, colonies or dependencies, in America, 
Africa, Asia, and Australia, would be 8d. Vigorous steps 
are now being taken in England to induce the Govern- 
ment to adopt this measure during the approaching ses- 
sion of Parliament. The Bight Hon. T. M. Gibson, M. P., 
h.8,6 engaged to bring it before the House of Commons in a 
distinct motion. A series of public meetiDgs has already 
been held, and will be continued for several months, until 
the subject has been presented in all the considerable 
towns in the kingdom. It is expected that 1000 petitions 
to Parliament in favour of the measure will be obtained, 
and many of the most influential members of that body 
enlisted in behalf of the project. Several Chambers of 
Commerce, and other commercial associations have engaged 
to petition for it, and influential persons of all political 
parties and religious denominations, are cordially co-oper- 
atiiig for its speedy realization. It seems to interest all 
classes of the community, not only those who have per 
sonal friends, or commercial correspondents in tlje distant 
countries of the British empire, but those also who desire 
to see abolirihed everything in distance that' tei'ds to 
escrange froia them their fellow subjects abroad, or to pre- 
vent the development of that friendly intercourse ijud 
correspondence which would socia-lly make them all part 
and parcel of the Home country. 



• 

Now, while these efforts are being made in Great 
Britain to establish a postal system which must so deeply 
interest all the inhabitants of the distant provinces, 
colonies, and dependencies of the empire, we would ear- 
nestly appeal to them for their co-operation in securing 
this great boon to the world. We would urge upon them 
the importance and necessity of uniting their petitions 
and memorials for such an ocean penny postage with thode 
of their fellow subjects in the Home country. We are 
confident, if they would thus unite their efforts with ours, 
we should speedily see this great measure realized, and 
crowned with blessed consequences to all the sea-divided 
communities of mankmd. Memorials or petitions from 
legislative assemblies, municipal bodies, chambers of com- 
merce, towns, villages, religious congregations, missionary 
societies, &c.. addressed m due form to the Crown, or 
Home Government, would aid invaluably the efforts now 
being put forth in Great Britain to secure this great boon, 
which will bring equal blessings and benericience to all the 
subjects of the British Government, in vv^hatever region of 
the globe they may reside. We would earnestly appeal to 
every christian, patriot or philanthropist, who reads this 
statement, to lend a hand to the work ; to interest his 
friends and fellow-citizens in the question ; to get a me- 
morial or petition in favour of an Ocean Penny Postage 
signed by the members of the legislature, or of the town 
council, chamber of commerce, ecclesiastical body, or re- 
ligious congregation, of which he may be a member, or by 
the inhabitants of the town of which he is a citizen, it 
is expected that Mr. Gibson will briDg forward his mo- 
tion in the House of Commons for this postal reform 
during the month of April 1853, therefore, all petitions 
and memorials from the colonies should be sent in early 
in that month. All such as may be directed to our care will 
be put into the hands of Members of Parliament, who will 
not only present them, but support the measure with a 
voice and a vote. 

The Petition of the undersigned 

Sheweth, — That your petitioners are deeply impressed 
with the great and manifold advantages which would re- 
sult from the establishment of a system of Ocean Penny 
Postage, by which the siugle service of merely transporting 
a letter from any port of Great Britain to any port in any 
of its colonies or dependencies beyond the sea, shall be 
performed for the uniform charge of Orie Pewny for each 



480 



AUSTRALASIA. 



letter under half an ounce in weight. Your petitioner.? 
are fully persuaded that this measure would vastly in- 
crease correspondence and facilitate friendly intercourse 
between the rapidly increasing colonial populations of the 
British Empire, and their fellow-subjects in the Mother 
Country, and thus tend greatly to unite them more and 
more closely in those bonds of fraternal sympathy and feh 
lowship which should subsist between subjects of the 
same Government. Your petitioners would particularly 
advert to the invaluable blessings which the estabhshment 
of such an Ocean Penny Postage would bring to the .vast 
number of emigrants that are yearly flocking to our 
shores from Great Britain and Ireland ; and who are, to 
a great extent, cut oE from coiTespondence with their re- 
latives and friends in the land of their birth by the present 
high postal charge on letters. Your petitioners, therefore, 
earnestly pray that early measures may be adopted for re- 
ducing the charge of merely conveying each letter, under 
half-an-ounce in weight, fi'om any port in the British 
Empire beyond the sea, to the uniform charge of One 
Penny. 

And your petitioners will ever pray, &c. 

It will not cost any friend of this scheme any sensible 
sacrifice of time or money to copy the above petition at 
the head of a large sheet of ruled foolscap paper, and get 
50 or 100 respectable signatures attached to it. And we 
earnestly solicit from every such person this little contri- 
bution of time and trouble to the movement, which is 
costing others so much labour. All such petitions, -and 
communications on the subject, may be addressed, postage 
paid, to the undersigned. 

ELIHU BURRITT. 



FINIS. 



J. S. Pratt, Stokesley, Yorkshire. 



I iiiiiiiiiiiiii^^^^ ^ 

0 019 931 827 5 



